First the felony becomes a misdemeanor. Then it goes away.

The felony must be reducible — commonly referred to as a "wobbler." A wobbler is an offense the Legislature made punishable either as a felony or as a misdemeanor; Penal Code section 17(b) gives the court discretion to declare it a misdemeanor. Assault with a deadly weapon, criminal threats, grand theft, and corporal injury to a spouse are familiar examples.

Straight felonies — robbery, residential burglary, and many others — cannot be reduced under 17(b), no matter how old the case or how good the years since. And if the case ended in a state prison sentence, reduction is off the table regardless of the offense. Neither fact ends the conversation: a non-reducible felony can often still be dismissed; it simply remains a felony on the record.

Our system screens the code section you were convicted under the moment you enter it, tells you plainly which side of the line you appear to be on, and attorney Gaurav Bali confirms from the minute order before anything is filed. If reduction is not available, you are charged only for the expungement — you are only ever charged for the service that actually applies.

When the court weighs a reduction, it looks at the nature of the offense and its facts, how probation actually went, your criminal history, and your personal history since — which is precisely why our intake is built around dated, specific facts. When reduction is granted, the offense is a misdemeanor for most purposes going forward: the felony question changes on applications, jury service eligibility returns, and licensing conversations start from a different place. A few consequences follow their own rules — serious or violent "strike" implications do not vanish, registration duties are unaffected, and federal firearm law runs on its own track — and we tell you plainly which of these, if any, touches your case before you decide anything.

One petition, both requests: the 17(b) reduction and the dismissal, supported by a declaration built from your facts. Attorney Gaurav Bali prepares it, files it, and argues it at the hearing — included in the flat fee.

1. 1

   Wobbler screening, before anything else

   The moment you enter your charge, our system checks the code section against California's reducible offenses and tells you plainly which side of the line you appear to be on. Attorney Gaurav Bali then confirms from the minute order itself. If the felony is not reducible, you are told before anything is filed — and the fee adjusts to expungement only. No filing is ever built on a wrong assumption.

2. 2

   Your answers, your records

   The intake gathers the exact charge and conviction date, how probation went, and your life since — jobs with start dates, programs with completion dates, the context behind any missteps. These dated facts become the declaration a judge can actually rely on.

3. 3

   One petition, both requests

   A single petition carries both requests at once: reduction of the felony to a misdemeanor under section 17(b), and dismissal under section 1203.4. Attorney Gaurav Bali prepares it with your supporting declaration, and you confirm your information is accurate before it is finalized.

4. 4

   Filing, notice, and the hearing

   Filed in the county of conviction, with the required notice to the prosecutor. Reduction is discretionary — the judge is weighing whether you have earned it — so when the matter is heard, attorney Gaurav Bali is there to argue it. Included, always.

5. 5

   The order, and after

   When granted, the offense is declared a misdemeanor and then dismissed. For most purposes going forward you may answer that you have not been convicted of a felony; the handful of exceptions that survive are explained to you in writing, before you rely on anything.

A granted reduction rewrites the headline: where a felony stood, a misdemeanor stands, for most purposes going forward — and then the dismissal clears even that. On applications that ask "have you ever been convicted of a felony?", the answer changes in the way that changes lives.

The dismissal that follows carries the full protection of Labor Code section 432.7: most employers may not ask about, seek out, or use a judicially dismissed conviction. Housing and license applications see the reduced-and-dismissed record — a categorically different story than an open felony.

And because private background-check databases refresh on their own schedules, we give you certified proof of both orders — the reduction and the dismissal — with exactly what to send when a stale commercial report needs correcting.

Reduction and dismissal are usually heard together, so the combined petition typically resolves within one to four months of filing — county calendars control the pace. When the court holds a hearing on discretion, attorney Gaurav Bali argues it — you will almost never need to appear.