From other lawyers, I have recently heard unfavourable comments about organizations who promote themselves as expert in obtaining pardons. At least one organization now offers, for an increased fee, an expedited service. The simple fact is that a pardon application requires three basic processes. Each must be completed correctly, else the whole process will be delayed. The first is obtaining certified copies of the court charges, the second is a CPIC records check and the third is completion of the application form.
In my recent blog about amendments to the Criminal Records Act, I commented about "anyone who has done one or two of these applications can make a career out of doing applications for others. This is evident in the significant growth of organizations that offer pardon removal services."
I don't know about who is following my blog, but after posting that entry, some woman with a toll-free number called me in response asking if I was interested in her doing a guest column. I didn't bother calling back because I was pretty sure the guest column was going to be a promotion for some not-for-profit pardons organization. (The 'not for profit' claim is probably misleading because, no doubt, the person who runs the deal pays himself or herself a salary based the organizations net profit.)
