About the Project
Legal Aid of North Carolina’s Second Chance Project offers assistance with expunction and driver’s license restoration, helping individuals gain financial stability and reducing recidivism.
Find Help
Important Update: Due to high demand and staffing changes, we are suspending general phone intake for the Second Chance Project for the remainder of 2025.
If you live in Durham, Wake, or New Hanover counties, please see the county-specific instructions below.
Wake County Residents
Thanks to funding from the Capital Area Workforce Development, we are offering monthly workshops at Wake County NCWorks. These workshops include a brief presentation about expunction followed by in-person intake for expunction and driver’s license restoration files. If you are interested in attending one of these workshops, please contact Shanae Artis at shanae.artis@wake.gov.
Durham County Residents
Thanks to funding from Durham County, the Durham Expunction & Restoration Program (DEAR) continues to provide expunction and driver’s license restoration services to Durham County residents.
Durham County residents must apply in-person at the DEAR office, located in the Durham Courthouse.
New Hanover County Residents
Second Chance Wilmington’s current funding ended on September 30, 2025, and we must pause new client intake while we seek new support.
We are deeply grateful to the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners and the local community for supporting Second Chance Wilmington since its launch in 2022. Over the past three years, your partnership has allowed us to provide life-changing legal services—like expunctions, driver’s license restorations, and certificates of relief—to hundreds of residents across the county.
We are actively pursuing new funding and are hopeful that services will resume in the near future.
Thank you for believing in our mission. Your support has made a difference—and we look forward to continuing this important work with you soon.
Community Organizations
If you are a community organization who is interested in partnering with the Second Chance Project for an expunction event in your area, please reach out directly to our Project Director, Emily Mistr, at emilym2@legalaidnc.org.