How Does Restorative Justice Ensure Good Practice?

Source: (2004) In, Howard Zehr and Barb Toews, eds., Critical Issues in Restorative Justice. Monsey, New York and Cullompton, Devon, UK: Criminal Justice Press and Willan Publishing. Pp. 265-271.

Restorative justice in New Zealand grew out of dissatisfaction in the Maori community with treatment of them and their young people by social agencies and the criminal justice system, write Jim Boyack, Helen Bowen, and Chris Marshall. Thus originating as a self-sown, community-based initiative, restorative justice gained official sanction in New Zealand through a series of legislative acts in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The authors note that from the outset restorative justice providers in New Zealand recognized the need to monitor and improve facilitation of conferences (for adults and for youth) and other processes. The question being discussed then by providers is how to ensure good practice in restorative justice programs. Boyack, Bowen, and Marshall sketch the values-based approach to defining standards of good practice chosen by the Restorative Justice Exchange in New Zealand.