Involving Insurance Companies in Restorative Justice Processes

Source: (2003) Paper presented at the Sixth International Conference on Restorative Justice. June 2003. The Centre for Restorative Justice, Simon Fraser University. Downloaded 2 October 2003.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the implications of the involvement of insurance companies as stakeholders in restorative processes in order to consider whether there is disjuncture between the practice of restorative justice and the principles that guide that practice. This paper will discuss incidents that involve both a direct victim and the payment of a claim by an insurance company for the damage caused by an offender. The questions that arise from these incidents are central to the practice of restorative justice: who are the relevant stakeholders and how should they be involved in a restorative process? More specifically: should a corporate entity such as an insurance company be considered a stakeholder, and, if so, what should their role be in a restorative process? This paper will likely raise more questions rather than provide answers; my intent is simply to raise this issue for discussion. Abstract courtesy of the Centre for Restorative Justice, Simon Fraser University, www.sfu.ca/crj.