Making the most of public records can be as time consuming or as intensive as you choose to make it. One example of taking advantage taking advantage of a public record search is to find contact information on business that you are looking to purchase something from. You can use a public record database to find contact information on someone you are trying to track down a payment from.

You can use US Public Records as you conduct background checks on potential new employees. You can conduct public records research as you trace genealogy for your family or someone else's. Use a public record search to find out how much campaign funds were used in a particular election. Access public records providers to located bankruptcy records to ensure that they business you are preparing to partner with has not had any previous known bankruptcy issues.

To try your hand at making the most of public records:

1. Use public record information to track down people who owe your business money.

2. Use public records to run a background check on new hires.

3. Use public record information to look up bankruptcy records on potential business partners.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Search public records for contact information

Take advantage of public records for contact information on individuals to track down phone numbers, addresses, email addresses and more.

I recommend: Start your people search at addresses.com. There you can do a people search, reverse phone lookup, yellow pages search or email lookup. PeopleBot is another people search engine as well.

Use public records search services to run background checks

Utilize public records search services to help you run background checks on new hire employees.

I recommend: Use SEARCH.com to find out information on small claim civil judgments, bankruptcies, tax liens or criminal history. Use the resources provided by the Background Check Gateway regarding use of backgrounds check in hiring. Learn about the Fair Credit Reporting Act and what the applicants rights are.

Search bankruptcy public record information

Make the most of online public records regarding bankruptcy to help you in uncovering financial information about the availability of assets for a business or individuals that you might choose to do business with.

I recommend: Use the PACER Service Center through the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to find public records on bankruptcy information. Use KnowX to search public records for bankruptcy filings Chapter 7, 11, 12 or 13.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  When you start to do business with a new company or small business, use public records to run a search on them, even if its as simple as running a Google search on their business name. As the saying goes, 'Know who you are getting into bed with.' You may laugh, but when your new business colleague sticks you with all of the work, and expects half of the profit, you will start to question why you didn't better research that person's integrity, background or business sense before you chose to start working with him or her. Ten minutes of research can save you a lifetime of bailing out of a mistake or out of jail.

Conducting research for public records used to be a tedious task filled with phone calls and trips to libraries, courthouses and other public agencies. Fortunately, these days you can find many records you may need – from background information on employees to corporate filings – on the Internet with the click of a mouse. And sometimes you can obtain public records free of charge.

Three ways researching public records can benefit a small business include:

1. You can find criminal information on potential employees.
2. You can find detailed corporate information on competitors.
3. You can find judgments, liens and bankruptcy records when considering buying real estate or another business, or when assessing deals with customers, clients or business associates.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Finding corporate and court records

Corporate records searches are a powerful tool. These documents may include anything from corporate filings information to bankruptcy records to business licenses.

I recommend: Experian has a service offering comprehensive online business public records reports, much in the way it structures credit reports. LexisNexis allows corporate clients to conduct searches, and Court Records has a variety of court- and business-related records.

Public background information on employees

Finding criminal background information on a potential employee is typically high on the list for any employer. This is normally included in a background check package, and there are countless places to find this information on the Web.

I recommend: Unless you go to a courthouse personally, you will usually pay to obtain general and criminal background information online. Intelius and Search Systems can help you get the job done.

People and address searches

Are you looking for someone or want to know an address? It's probably best to start with a free search engine, which normally has a people locator feature.

I recommend: Try Yahoo, Zabasearch or WhitePages for a free look. Or, for a fee, try US Search.

Search private records

There are a number of records you may seek on a potential employee that are nonpublic. These private records include medical records, social security numbers, credit information and employment history.

I recommend: Unfortunately, there is not much you can do about getting private records without consent. If a potential employee signs off, companies such as Accurate Information Systems and Corporate Screening Services specialize in pre-employment screening.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Squeeze the most out of free sites before paying for information.
• •  Beware: Public records (particularly free ones) on the Web may contain partial files.
• •  Can the information you find be documented by more than one site? Check out a Web site's credibility by possibly calling its information line.
• •  A good way to gauge the credibility of the site is to see who else has links to it, or read the 'About Us' section.
• •  The Web, and even the courthouse, may not be the most updated information available. There may be a lag time from when something is filed to when it actually is put into the system.

Knowing public records basics can help you find the vital information that you need. From tracking down a person who hasn't paid his or her bill, to keeping a predator out of your neighborhood, knowing who lives where and who has done what can be valuable knowledge.

When you access public records, you will find all kinds of information. Public records include death records, marital records, criminal records, arrest records, absconder records, jail records, sentencing files, parolee information, most wanted criminal lists, sex offender information, mugshots, missing children and adults, court records, civil records, bankruptcy records, census reports, addresses, phone numbers, births, business information, campaign financing, charitable organizations, court records, liquor licenses as well as unclaimed property.

To make the most of public records basics:

1. Use online public records to find contact information for people.

2. Pull public criminal records to help keep your business and neighborhoods safe.

3. Take advantage of public record metadatabases for target searches like unclaimed property or campaign financing.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Access public records to pull up contact info

Use public records online to find out contact information on people you are needing to get a hold of. Friends, family or people who owe your business money are all prime candidates for people you might search for in a public record database.

I recommend: Search for people by name, phone number, social security number, address or email address through PeopleLookup. PeopleLookup will then when available provide you with the individual's current address, phone number, age, birth date, household members as well as additional information, such as previous address(es), and relatives names, which can be helpful in confirming if this is indeed the person that you are looking for. PeopleFinders.com is another person look up search engine, but they also offer background checks, criminal record checks, business ownership information and public record information as well.

Use online public records to keep your neighborhood safe

Public records and public criminal records can also tell about criminal backgrounds and where the sexual predators are in your state and neighborhood.

I recommend: Look up a potential threat on the Indiana's Sheriffs' Sex and Violent Offender Registry. For your particular state, go to Google or your search engine and type in your state name followed by "Sex Offender Registry." Crimcheck.com offers free criminal public record information.

Use a public record search metasearch site

Take advantage of a public record search site that allows you to search for more than one category type while you are on the same search engine. Look for sex offenders on the same site that you are researching campaign funds, or look up who has received workers comp on the same site you are pulling up address information.

I recommend: Use an all in one search engine like Gov-Resources.com. Their site covers a wide variety of public record information including marital records, death records, criminal records, sex offender records, court records and people's contact information. Search Systems lets you public records by type of record, by state or by country. They cover a wide variety of topics including campaign finance, workers comp, unclaimed property, missing persons and more.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  A word of warning before you go searching public records on the person you are interviewing. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), your small business is required to have potential new hire employees sign a disclosure form that grants you authorization to perform a background check during the interview process. Signing this disclosure doesn't restrict you to just credit reports, and it can include all 'consumer reports.' Laws will vary from state to state, though, on what information can be used during the pre-employment screening process, so find out what laws are applicable to your particular state.

Public records keep track of many different aspects of an individual's or business' existence. While all the information is kept organized in one area, it can be potentially complicated to sift through such information and make the most of it. There are many terms and concepts related to public records and public records searches, but by understanding some of the most popular and prevalent terminology, searches of public records may become faster, more convenient and more effective. Time and resources in utilizing the information found in public records will also be easier if you understand all about them.

Action Steps
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Official copy

An official copy is a public record status document that has been created or received by an employee or officer of the state while conducting official state business. Official copies are also often referred to as the primary copy or the matter-of-record copy. It is important that official copies follow records management requirements and may be disposed of or expunged only with the approval of the State Records Committee.

I recommend: In the FAQs section of public records at JeffCityMO.org, you can read about what to do if you need an official copy of public records.

Record schedule

A record schedule pertains to the instructions for what entities, governments and individuals are to do with public records that are no longer of need to the current government conducting business. A records schedule is also referred to as a records retention or a disposition schedule. The schedule offers a minimum period of time for preserving a specific record.

I recommend: KY.gov offers its record schedule and policies with respect to the storage of its files and records.

Rolling-disposal request

A rolling-disposal request is a form utilized to provide an agency with the annual revolving approval with respect to the disposal of a specific series of records as stated by the State Record Committee. Such requests are only to be utilized when there are secondary or duplicated record series.

I recommend: ExpertGlossary.com provides a detailed and full explanation of a rolling-disposal request form.

Judgment

Judgments can be found in public records and public record searches. The judgment part of a public record contains information that the individual and the creditor were in a dispute and that the creditor had won the lawsuit against the individual been awarded something in court, referred to as a judgment. Public record judgments may also indicate whether or not the debt is paid off.

I recommend: AskMeHelpDesk.com offers information on how to potentially remove a judgment from one's public record.

Lien

A lien is a security interest that has been granted with respect to an item of property. Liens are used in order to secure payments of loans, debts or other types of financial obligations.

I recommend: Government tax liens are described at MikesTaxLienTips.com.

Absconder records

If an individual runs away in order to avoid arrest or avoid prosecution, this information is documented in his or her public records. In the public record, this information is referred to as the absconder record of the individual.

I recommend: Characteristics of mental health patients with absconder records can be found at RCPsych.org. An article featuring information about absconders with criminal records is located at UAEinteract.com. At ICE.gov, the removal of alien absconders from the United States is discussed.