Quick Overview
- It maintains one of the largest databases of legal content globally - including court decisions, legislation, law reviews, and legal commentary from over 130 countries.
- For EU-based requests or GDPR-specific claims, their regional offices and data protection officer contacts are also available through their website.
- If the direct request to vLex stalls, Google de-indexing is the next route to work.
On this page 7 sections
What Is vLex?
vLex is an international legal research platform headquartered in Spain, with operations across Europe, Latin America, the United States, and other regions. It maintains one of the largest databases of legal content globally - including court decisions, legislation, law reviews, and legal commentary from over 130 countries. Learn more about expungement vs. record sealing on our blog.
For US users, vLex indexes federal court opinions, Supreme Court decisions, circuit court rulings, and selected state court opinions. This content is sourced from the same public record systems as domestic platforms - PACER for federal cases, state court websites for state cases - but is presented within vLex's global research interface. Learn more about Spokeo removal on our blog.
vLex is primarily a subscription platform used by law firms, corporate legal departments, government agencies, and academic institutions globally. However, some vLex pages are publicly accessible and indexed by Google, which means they can surface in name-based searches even for individuals who have no connection to legal practice.
vLex is headquartered in Spain and operates as a European company subject to GDPR. This is significant: EU residents have strong data erasure rights under GDPR that carry legal weight in requests to vLex's privacy team, and vLex has established processes for handling GDPR-based requests.
Why Does Your Record Appear on vLex?
vLex indexes published court opinions and legal documents from public record sources. Your record may appear on vLex because:
- You are a named party in a US federal or state court case that produced a published opinion
- Your case involved international parties or cross-border legal issues that made it relevant to vLex's international legal database
- A US appellate opinion naming you was indexed as part of vLex's US court coverage
- A business entity with your name was involved in published commercial litigation
- Your case was indexed by vLex from PACER or state court data sources
Because vLex serves a global professional audience, its US court content sits alongside international content in a database used by attorneys and researchers worldwide. A vLex listing for your case is accessible to legal professionals in other countries who may encounter it during international due diligence or cross-border research.
Unlike purely US-focused platforms, a vLex listing for your case is potentially visible to legal researchers and due diligence teams operating outside the United States. This international dimension adds a layer of exposure that domestic-only platforms do not create.
Does vLex Have a Removal Process?
Yes. vLex has privacy and data removal request processes accessible through their data team. The primary contact for US-based requests is privacy@vlex.com. For EU-based requests or GDPR-specific claims, their regional offices and data protection officer contacts are also available through their website.
The strongest grounds for a vLex removal request include:
- GDPR right to erasure (Article 17) - for EU residents or cases with EU connections
- A US court order expunging or sealing the underlying record
- A court order directing redaction of personal information from the published opinion
- Compelling privacy interest with documented harm - especially relevant for cases involving sensitive personal circumstances
- Demonstrated errors in the information vLex is displaying
Because vLex is a European company operating under GDPR, it has well-developed processes for handling data subject requests from EU residents. For US residents without GDPR rights, direct privacy requests citing expungement orders or compelling interests remain the applicable path - and can be effective when well-documented.
Direct US privacy requests to privacy@vlex.com. For GDPR requests, identify yourself as a data subject under GDPR Article 17 and request erasure with documentation. vLex must respond to GDPR requests within 30 days.
Step-by-Step: How to Submit a Removal Request to vLex
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1Identify every vLex page displaying your information. Search vLex directly and via Google using your name. Note each URL and capture dated screenshots. vLex pages sometimes have multiple URLs for the same document - capture them all.
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2Determine your legal basis. Are you an EU resident invoking GDPR? Do you have a US expungement or sealing order? Is your basis a compelling privacy interest? Identifying your strongest grounds shapes the framing of your request.
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3Gather documentation. Certified court orders, expungement decrees, or a well-prepared privacy harm statement are the key documents. Obtain certified copies of any court orders from the clerk of court.
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4Email privacy@vlex.com with a formal request. Identify yourself by case reference (not unnecessary personal details), specify the exact URLs, state your legal basis, and attach documentation. Keep the request professional and factual.
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5If invoking GDPR, identify yourself as a data subject. State explicitly that you are a data subject exercising your right to erasure under GDPR Article 17. Identify the lawful basis for processing you believe should be overridden by your right to erasure. GDPR requests require a response within 30 days.
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6Follow up and escalate if needed. If no response within two weeks (or 30 days for GDPR), follow up and note intent to escalate to Google de-indexing and, for GDPR requests, the relevant national supervisory authority.
If the Direct Request Stalls - Google De-Indexing
If a direct request to vLex has not produced action yet, Google de-indexing is the route that often moves things forward. Removing the vLex page from Google's search index addresses the primary source of harm - its visibility to anyone searching your name - even while the page remains on vLex's servers.
Submitting the Google Request
Use Google's Personal Information Removal Tool to submit the specific vLex URLs. Explain the nature of the personal information visible and the harm its continued indexing causes. If you have a court order showing the record has been legally cleared, include this context in your submission.
After Google de-indexes the page, search engines other than Google - Bing, DuckDuckGo, Yahoo - may still index the vLex page. Consider submitting to Bing's Content Removal Tool as well, since Bing's results power several other search engines including DuckDuckGo.
If vLex has not responded to a properly submitted GDPR erasure request within 30 days, EU residents can escalate by filing a complaint with their national data protection authority (DPA). In Spain, where vLex is headquartered, this is the Agencia Española de Protección de Datos (AEPD). Filing a DPA complaint significantly escalates the pressure on vLex to comply.
After Expungement or Sealing - Does vLex Update?
Not automatically, which is why a documented request is what gets the record updated. The opinion was indexed when it was public, and vLex does not run an automated check for later changes in legal status, so a formal request with your expungement or sealing order attached is what puts the change in front of vLex.
After receiving your expungement or sealing order, apply the following steps to vLex:
- Obtain a certified copy of your order from the court clerk
- Identify all vLex pages referencing the now-cleared case
- Submit a formal removal request to privacy@vlex.com with the order attached
- Emphasize that the legal basis for continued publication - the record being part of the public legal record - no longer exists
- Follow up with Google de-indexing for any pages that stay live on vLex
Because vLex is used by legal researchers globally, Google de-indexing handles general search results while direct removal from vLex covers research inside the platform. For cases with international dimensions, pursuing both together is the most complete route.
Working with Professionals on vLex Removal
vLex removal is often one component of a broader multi-platform strategy. A US case appearing on vLex is typically also on Justia, CourtListener, Leagle, Google Scholar, and potentially CaseMine. Addressing all platforms simultaneously through a coordinated approach produces the most complete result.
Professional removal services are particularly valuable for vLex cases with international dimensions:
- Full platform audit: Identifying every platform globally that may be displaying your record
- GDPR expertise: Properly framing GDPR-based requests for maximum legal effect
- Multi-platform coordination: Submitting requests to vLex and all related platforms simultaneously
- Google and Bing de-indexing: Managing technical removal requests across all major search engines
- Monitoring: Watching for re-indexing on vLex and other platforms after initial removal
We help identify whether removal may be possible from vLex and all related platforms. Our review is free and there is no upfront cost.
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