For employers who run background checks as part of their hiring process it is important to the employer that the background check be completed in a timely manner. Last year, in None v. Hamrick, the California Court of Appeals made that process appreciably more difficult by prohibiting searches of criminal court records with the use of a person’s birth date or driver’s license number.

In None v. Hamrick, a challenge was mounted to Riverside County Superior Court’s Public Access system, which allowed users to filter and search criminal records based on dates of birth and/or driver’s license numbers. The plaintiffs asserted the system violated Rule 2.507 of the California Rules of Court, which provides that electronic indexes of criminal case records must exclude, among other things, social security numbers, birth dates, drivers’ license numbers, financial information, and ethnicity, age, and gender designations.

As a result of the ruling in None v. Hamrick, employers’ ability to run routine and speedy background checks has become complicated and more time-consuming, especially in the case of applicants or employees with common first and/or last names. Just try to find the right John Smith without the use of a birth date or driver’s license number. The California Chamber of Commerce advises that some employers are reporting delays of multiple weeks in hiring as a result of the changes
in the background check process.

Fortunately for employers, this may change in the near future. Last month, a bill was introduced in the California State Senate that would reinstate more streamlined searches of court records. If passed, Senate Bill 1262 would require that publicly accessible electronic indexes of court records in criminal cases be searchable by driver’s license, date of birth, or both.

As of March 2, 2022, the new bill has been referred to the Committee on Public Safety.

Before employers run background checks they should analyze whether they should truly be required and, if so, discuss with their business attorney how to comply with the present state of the law.

The information presented is not intended to be, and does not constitute, “legal advice.” Because each situation varies, and only brief summary information is provided here, you should not use this information as a basis for action unless you have independently verified with your own counsel that it applies to your particular situation.