People are placed in the real dilemma of taking a risk by not disclosing those convictions only to have them surface at some time later during the employment with consequential embarrassment with possible loss of job. Traffic convictions, in particular may impact upon a person s ability to obtain motor vehicle insurance and even if that insurance is obtained may carry a premium loading. A further example can be found in the position whereby a person having incurred a conviction for an offence punishable by imprisonment was then barred from re-entering a race course until consent had been obtained from the racing conference. The time is therefore right in our opinion for convictions to be deleted from a person s criminal record after a period of years. The only difficulties are which convictions should be deleted and what period of time should elapse before deletion.
Further issues relate to the manner of deletion and the effect on defamation law.
It is accepted that only less serious offences should be included in any proposal for deletion. It is also accepted that a reasonably long period of time without any further convictions should be required for the reward of deletion to occur. New South Wales passed the Criminal Records Act in 1991. The object of the Act is to implement a scheme to limit the effect of a person s conviction for a relatively minor offence if a person completes a period of crime-free behaviour. On completion of the period the conviction is regarded as spent and, subject to some exceptions, does not form part of the person s criminal history.