There shall be a rebuttable presumption against admission of evidence of the prior criminal conviction of an applicant or employee in an action alleging that an employer has been negligent in hiring an applicant or retaining an employee, or in supervising the employer’s agent, representative or designee with respect to hiring an applicant or retaining an employee, if the applicant or employee held a valid provisional pardon or certificate of rehabilitation at the time such alleged negligence occurred and a party establishes, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the employer knew that the applicant or employee held a valid provisional pardon or certificate of rehabilitation at the time such alleged negligence occurred. For the purposes of this section, “employer” has the same meaning as provided in section 31-51i.