A civil records search vs.
   criminal records search

A civil search is an excellent tool for screening job applicants who may have access to your money or your merchandise. It is also a good source of information for cases involving sexual harassment or discrimination, as well as contracts.

This search is strongly recommended before entering into strategic business alliances.

There are three levels of searches:

Federal civil.
Federal civil searches (usually white collar offenses) include records that involve alleged violations of federal statutory or constitutional rights. These civil cases are brought by individuals, businesses or governmental entities; they may seek monetary damages, request injunctions to stop allegedly illegal behavior or monetarily pursue other remedies provided by law. Federal civil cases deal with many types of issues, including interstate commerce, anti-trust activity and violations of federal codes.

Upper and lower civil courts.
These venues are distinguished based upon the financial value of a claim. The monetary amount that dictates the proper venue varies from state to state.

Lower civil searches identify lower value cases such as eviction, small claims and minor disputes.

Upper Civil searches are generally of higher value, cases such as divorce and other more substantial monetary settlements.

To view a sample PDF of a civil record report, click here.