The laws governing the acquisition of background checks can differ from state to state and between government agencies.  Some places have criminal background check laws that are very lenient while other places have laws that are more stringent.  It is important to review the criminal background check law information for a particular area before conducting a background check on someone.  

Criminal background check laws can govern many different areas of the background check process.  In some areas, it is against the law for a person or an employer to conduct a background check on a person without their express written consent to the background check.  The background check may also be limited by the number of years in the past the background check is authorized to search, which is generally between 5 to 10 years.

Certain government agencies have created their own criminal background check laws for the background check reports that they use or issue.  For example, federal background check reports from the Federal Bureau of Investigation may only be requested by the person the background check is regarding.  Criminal background checks conducted as part of the Brady Handgun Violence Protection Act are required by law and places the responsibility of obtaining the background check on the licensed gun dealers.