If a broker is dealing with a disclosure on the Central Registration Depository, or CRD, the word expungement can sound deceptively simple. In practice, it is a technical process shaped by FINRA rules, arbitration procedure, public-disclosure policy, and court involvement. A lot of confusion comes from three issues in particular: what a CRD disclosure actually is, when a straight-in request may be available, and why an expungement award often is not the end of the story.
This post breaks those topics down in plain English. In this post you’ll learn what shows up on CRD and BrokerCheck, how FINRA’s current expungement framework works, when a broker may pursue a separate arbitration just for expungement, and why court confirmation often determines whether relief becomes effective at all. If you want broader context on how these disputes fit into the securities industry system, this overview of investor claims, FINRA disputes, and expungement procedure helps connect the big picture.
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The Central Registration Depository is the securities industry’s registration database. FINRA collects registration and disclosure information there, and some of that information is made available to the public through BrokerCheck, which FINRA describes as a free tool for investors researching brokers and firms. FINRA explains that customer dispute information reported to CRD can appear publicly and may remain visible unless expungement is granted and made effective through the required process. FINRA’s expungement topic page and its BrokerCheck materials both frame these disclosures as part of investor protection and transparency.
In everyday terms, a CRD disclosure can involve a customer complaint, arbitration claim, or civil litigation entry tied to a registered person. That does not automatically tell the whole story about what happened. Some disclosures involve denied allegations, settled matters, procedural resolutions, or disputes where the broker argues the information is factually inaccurate or misleading in context. That is one reason expungement exists at all.
Still, expungement is not designed as a routine cleanup tool. FINRA and the SEC have repeatedly described it as an extraordinary remedy intended for limited situations, not a normal follow-up step whenever a disclosure is inconvenient. The SEC’s order approving FINRA’s recent amendments emphasized tighter procedural safeguards around these requests, and FINRA’s own rule materials reflect the same policy direction. See the SEC approval order and FINRA’s expungement rule overview.
In general terms, expungement refers to the removal of specified customer dispute information from CRD. It is not a full erasure of every record connected to a broker’s career. The process is narrower than many people assume.
FINRA Rule 2080 addresses expungement of customer dispute information from CRD and explains that a member firm or associated person seeking expungement generally has to obtain either a court order directing expungement or a court order confirming an arbitration award containing expungement relief before FINRA will act. FINRA’s FAQ on Rule 2080 makes that point directly, which is why people often discover that “winning” expungement in arbitration and actually getting the record changed are two separate stages. See FINRA Rule 2080 FAQs.
That distinction matters because people often talk about expungement as if the arbitration hearing is the finish line. Often, it is closer to the midpoint.
If you want a more foundational walkthrough of the process from start to finish, this guide on removing customer dispute information from CRD is a useful companion piece.
FINRA’s current framework changed significantly on October 16, 2023, when amendments took effect to modify how expungement requests are handled in the arbitration forum. According to FINRA, the revised rules added stricter hearing requirements, created a Special Arbitrator Roster for certain cases, imposed time limits, and increased participation rights for customers and state securities regulators in straight-in requests. FINRA summarizes these changes on its expungement topic page, in Regulatory Notice 23-12, and in the rule text for Rule 13805 and Rule 13806.
The policy idea behind those amendments is fairly clear: expungement affects public-facing disclosure used by investors, regulators, and firms, so FINRA moved away from looser practices and toward a more formal, evidence-focused process.
That shift is also visible in FINRA’s published numbers. On its expungement statistics page, FINRA reports that after the October 2023 rule changes, straight-in requests continued to be filed in meaningful volume. FINRA lists 144 straight-in cases filed in 2024 and 155 filed from January 1 through August 31, 2025. For straight-in occurrences decided by a panel, FINRA reported 62 occurrences decided in 2024, with 38 granted and 24 denied, and 148 decided from January 1 through August 31, 2025, with 105 granted and 43 denied. Those figures suggest expungement remains available, but not automatic, even when brokers invest the time and cost to pursue it. See FINRA’s expungement statistics.
A straight-in request is an expungement request filed by an associated person separate from a customer arbitration under FINRA Rule 13805. FINRA uses that exact term in its Rule 13805 text, FAQ page, and expungement overview.
This usually comes up when expungement was not pursued, not available, or not resolved in the underlying customer matter. For example, FINRA explains that a straight-in request may be available in situations including: