An Introduction to Restorative Justice.

Source: (2007) Paper presented at the ‘Restorative Justice inEurope: Needs and Possibilities” conference in Lisbon, 10-12 May 2007.

In Restorative Justice (RJ) the offender, the victim and any other interested party meet with the help of a neutral facilitator to find a participatory solution to the conflict in which they are involved. This process aims at positively unwinding (“loosening”) problematic situations, thus allowing the parties to find a new way of managing social problems, developing options and evaluating alternatives, in order to come to an acceptable and mutually satisfying settlement. (excerpt)