By Siobhan Lawler

As gatekeepers to restorative justice (RJ) programs for domestic and family violence (DFV) and sexual violence, stakeholders in referring agencies perform the critical role of assessing the suitability of cases for entry into these programs. This article draws on interviews with 47 stakeholders in an RJ program for DFV and sexual violence in the Australian Capital Territory to better understand stakeholder decision-making about referrals. Findings show stakeholders’ decisions around which matters to refer to RJ centre on assessments of victim‑survivors’ safety and offender accountability. Many stakeholders are risk averse when deciding whether to make a referral, which may inadvertently reduce opportunities for victim-survivors to benefit and achieve their justice goals.

Trends & issues in crime and criminal justice no. 707, Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. 2025. 15p.

By Keenan, Marie and Zinsstag, Estelle

This book examines the degree to which restorative justice can contribute to a more enhanced justice response than that currently offered by criminal legal approaches alone, to victims, offenders, and their communities in cases of sexual crime. Concerned by the high attrition rates for sexual crime and the secondary victimization reported in victim accounts, annual reports from court and prosecutor services, and the empirical literature, the book analyses the extent to which restorative justice can address the justice gap that exists in current justice provision. Building on clinical experience and earlier research on sexual crime the researchers engage with the complex dynamics and traumatic impact of sexual violence as a critical starting point for their research and examine whether restorative justice can be appropriate for this crime too. The book presents extensive new data on restorative justice as applied in sexual violence cases across the globe. It engages with feminist concerns regarding the traumatic impact of sexual violence and the potential for re-traumatization; the power imbalances that characterize these offenses and the potential for re-victimization; the potential for coercion of the victim to participate in the process; the potential for manipulation of restorative justice by the offender; and the potential that restorative justice could lead to the reprivatization of sexual crime and ultimately to its decriminalization. Having examined these topics in detail the book concludes there is an important role for restorative justice as a victim-centred service in addressing the justice gap that exists after sexual crime and offers guidance on how this can be achieved.

Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2022. 417p.