Home → Resources → Public Policy Resources → Government Papers

Government Papers

Up one level

Law Commission of Canada. Minister’s Reference on Institutional Child Abuse: Discussion Paper.

Established in 1997 by Act of Parliament in Canada, the Law Commission of Canada is an independent federal law reform agency. The Commission provides advice to Parliament on reforming and modernizing Canada’s laws. In recent years the issue of child abuse has gained considerable public attention. This includes child abuse in institutions where children were placed for their education, welfare, rehabilitation, or even protection. In late 1997 the federal Minister of Justice asked the Law Commission of Canada to examine the matter of abuse in institutions. Specifically, the Commission examined processes for addressing the harms caused by abuse of children in government-run, government-funded, or government sponsored institutions. The Commission’s report identifies the needs of survivors of institutional child abuse, approaches to redress the harms, and ways to begin to provide redress for survivors.

Law Commission of Canada. Law Commission of Canada Annual Report 2003-2004.

Established in 1997 by Act of Parliament in Canada, the Law Commission of Canada is an independent federal law reform agency. As such, the Commission provides advice to Parliament on reforming and modernizing Canada’s laws. In its 2003-2004 annual report, the Commission highlights its efforts over the course of the year in the following areas: governance relationships; social relationships; economic relationships; and personal relationships. With respect to social relationships in particular, the Commission produced a report to Parliament titled Transforming Relationships through Participatory Justice. This report contains a number of proposals whereby governments, justice officials, community groups, and individuals working in conflict resolution can support innovative justice processes which have citizen participation at their core.

Law Commission of Canada. Law Commission of Canada Annual Report 2000-2001: Engaging Canadians.

Established in 1997 by Act of Parliament in Canada, the Law Commission of Canada is an independent federal law reform agency. The Commission provides advice to Parliament on reforming and modernizing Canada’s laws. Central to the Commission’s mission is to engage Canadian citizens in the process of understanding and renewing law. This is pursued through various ways and means, including research papers, discussion groups, conferences, meetings, and Internet interactivity (e.g., e-mail, comments boards, webcasts, and online discussions). This document consists of its annual report for 2000-2001. Of particular focus, beginning on page 8, is elaboration of the Commission’s efforts in exploring restorative justice as an alternative approach to the delivery of criminal justice. As part of this, the Commission is also investigating the extension of restorative justice principles into other areas of law, such as family law, labor law, and commercial law.

Law Commission of Canada. Law Commission of Canada Annual Report 1999-2000: Relationships.

Can the idea of transformative justice better shape how law recognizes diverse social relationships, conceives communities as areas of shared interest, and reconciles the competing demands of individual identity and group identities? In Canada’s socio-demographically diverse society, more people are identifying themselves both as members of society as a whole and as members of groups and communities. They are finding recognition and purpose in the groups and communities with which they choose to be associated, or to which they are assigned by others. In this they acknowledge how much their personal identity is made up of identities formed in relationships with others. Modern law deals uneasily with these overlapping identities. It focuses on individuals and takes a narrow view of which group identities and communal relationships are legitimate. Only rarely do legal concepts even recognize group identity as an element of personal identity. Especially where community membership and affiliation reflect cultural differences, Canadian law has difficulty both in providing equal access to justice and in responding to alternative visions of what justice entails. (excerpt)

Law Commission of Canada. Law Commission of Canada Annual Report 2002-2003.

There is a close connection between restorative justice in criminal law and alternative dispute resolution mechanisms in civil law. They both attempt to institute a new awareness of the processes through which conflicts are identified and structured, and of what might be the optimal corrective results for conflicts. Over the last few years, the Law Commission of Canada has consulted Canadians on their perceptions of the justice system and on the possibility that the principles and practices of restorative justice might provide an effective response to criminal and civil law conflicts. The Commission’s discussion paper, From Restorative Justice to Transformative Justice, has been widely distributed. The Commission also produced an educational video entitled Communities and the Challenge of Conflict: Perspectives on Restorative Justice, which explores the role of the community in conflict resolution, and funded several complementary projects dealing with conflict resolution. The Commission will publish a report on the challenges of transformative and consensual justice in 2003-2004. (excerpt)

Law Commission of Canada. Law Commission of Canada Annual Report 2001-2002.

The Commission’s research plan is structured around four broad themes: personal relationships, social relationships, economic relationships and governance relationships. These themes intentionally extend beyond the traditional understanding of the categories of the law (e.g. family law, criminal law and labour law) toward an examination that is without taboos or private preserves. It is a question of reflecting in an unbiased way on the effects of the law and of questioning the why of concepts in the law that, in many instances, appear sacrosanct. (excerpt)

Minister of Justice. Law Commission of Canada Performance Report For the period ending March 31, 2001.

The limitations of Canada’s justice system in responding to conflict have long been recognized. The civil court experience — for those Canadians who can access the courts — can leave all parties feeling dissatisfied and disenfranchised. The same can be said of the criminal court experience: victims often feel detached from the process and offenders are not always held responsible for the concrete consequences of their behaviour. The Commission has been exploring restorative justice as an alternative method of delivering criminal justice. It is also examining the potential for extension of restorative justice principles to other fields of law, such as family law, labour law and commercial law. (excerpt)

Minister of Justice. Law Commission of Canada Performance Report For the period ending March 31, 2002

Law that is relevant and effective and provides justice for all requires the involvement of citizens, a multidisciplinary approach to analysing problems and new concepts of law. The Law Commission engages Canadians in critical debate about the renewal of the law. It has developed an ambitious, multidisciplinary research plan responsive to concrete problems in Canadian law. It has also proposed new approaches to existing concepts of law as new socio-economic trends emerge. The Commission thus continues to fulfil the mandate set out in the Law Commission of Canada Act. (excerpt)

New Zealand Ministry of Justice. Summary of Submissions: Draft Principles of Best Practice for Restorative Justice Processes in the Criminal Court

This report summarises the feedback received by the Ministry of Justice on draft principles of best practice for the use of restorative justice processes in the criminal courts. In May 2003, draft principles were sent to approximately 100 stakeholders, including restorative justice providers, members of the judiciary, government departments, and relevant non-government organisations such as Victim Support and the National Network of Stopping Violence Services. 40 submissions were received. (excerpt)

Law Commission of New Zealand. Delivering Justice For All: A Vision for New Zealand Courts and Tribunals

The Law Commission was invited by the Government to undertake a review of the structure and operation of all state-based adjudicative bodies in New Zealand, including all courts and tribunals except the top tier of the appellate system.... The commission was directed to "have particular regard to its statutory obligations to take account of te ao Maori (the Maori dimension) and the multi-cultural character of New Zealand society in this exercise".... Includes recommendations for reform from the Law Commission to the Government in light of submissions, consultations and research. (excerpt)

South African Law Commission. Alternative dispute resolution

The South African Law Commission, established by the South African Law Commission Act (1973), undertakes research to study and investigate all areas of law in order to make recommendations for the development, improvement, modernization, and reform of law in South Africa. This document consists of an issue paper prepared by the Commission to elicit responses and serve as a basis for the Commission’s deliberations on alternative dispute resolution (ADR). Sections of the paper cover the origins of the Commission’s consideration of ADR; a description of the nature of ADR and types of ADR; specific issues with respect to ADR (the role of ADR in civil practice, and family mediation); and recommendations for the use of ADR in South Africa.

New Zealand Ministry of Justice. Restorative Justice: The Public Submissions

This document is an analysis of submissions received by the Ministry on restorative justice. The analysis identifies key themes and responses to specific issues, and also considers perspectives in relation to Mäori, Pacific peoples and victims. Overview of submissions. One hundred and thirteen submissions representing diverse interests were received.The views represented ranged from being highly supportive of to highly critical of the idea. Overall, the submissions were supportive of restorative justice. Opposition to restorative justice. Nine submissions were strongly opposed to restorative justice. Reasons included a view that it was too lenient, concern about the return of serious offenders to the community, a belief that it would not improve the situation for victims and the need for criminal justice processes to provide general deterrence. (excerpt)

The Audit Commission. A review of the reformed youth justice system: Youth justice 2004

The Audit Commission is an independent agency responsible for ensuring that public money is spent economically, efficiently, and effectively to provide high-quality local and national services for the public in the areas of local government, housing, health, and criminal justice. This document was published by the Audit Commission in 2004 for local authorities and the National Health Service in England & Wales. The report reviews the youth justice system in England & Wales following a relatively recent and radical overhaul of it. This reform stems from earlier reviews of youth justice in England and Wales by the Audit Commission, as well as from legislative changes made nationally in the youth justice system in the latter half of the 1990s, in particular the creation of a national Youth Justice Board and of multi-agency Youth Offending Teams. This 2004 review of the reforms looks at the current state of youth crime in England and Wales, systems for bringing young people to justice, management of Youth Offending Teams, and delivery of services to prevent and reduce youth offending. A number of appendices cover legislative reform of the youth justice system, Youth Justice Board targets for Youth Offending Teams, research methodology, community and custodial sentences, statistical analysis, and a glossary and references.

Home Office. Restorative justice: the Government’s Strategy - Responses to the consultation document

In July 2003 the British government published Restorative Justice: The Government’s Strategy. This consultation document generated many responses, coming from a wide range of criminal justice agencies, voluntary organizations, and individuals. This publication summarizes the many responses and gives an update on the government’s strategy. Four overarching themes emerged from the responses: (1) the need for careful implementation of restorative justice; (2) the implication of cultural change for the criminal justice system with respect to restorative justice; (3) the partnership role of voluntary and statutory agencies; and (4) the necessity of public understanding and acceptance of restorative justice. The document itself provides a description of the government’s restorative justice strategy, a summary of consultation responses, and annexes with lists of respondents, consultation questions, and examples of good practice on data sharing.

Correctional Service of Canada. Corrections in the 21st Century

As with most everything in modern life, the field of corrections does not stand still but changes over time. This document represents the Correctional Service of Canada’s attempt to look ahead and anticipate significant changes, to the extend that can be done, in order to plan for them and to operate appropriately in terms of policies and practices. Some of those anticipated changes include legislative revision, the demographics of the general population, shifting crime patterns, composition of the incarcerated population, health and behavioral characteristics of that population, new technologies and new concepts of governance and service delivery, and evolving public attitudes towards criminal justice issues. More specifically, the major topics covered in the document are these: crime reporting and the incarceration rate; drugs; initiatives for legislative change; technological advances; offender health; risk assessment; privatization; organized crime; victims; international tribunals; community corrections; and restorative justice. To a significant degree, the aim of the document is to stimulate discussion on the implications these trends may pose for the Correctional Service and other federal departments in Canada.

King, Andrea. Discussion Paper: Draft Principles of Best Practice for Restorative Justice Processes in the Criminal Court

New Zealand's program of restorative justice is at a significant stage of development. As such, this publication offers the principles of best practice in the field in an attempt to help frame policy for restorative justice processes within the criminal justice system. Not only do these principles of best practice provide guidelines about the use of restorative justice, they also protect the flexibility of the restorative justice process. The principles are drafted to be applied to a variety of restorative justice models operating throughout New Zealand. They are targeted for use in the criminal court for pre-sentence purposes, and do not apply to post-sentencing options. The discussion paper provides a general understanding of what restorative justice means and then, beginning in part 2, drafts the principles of best practices. These principles include elements related to the referral of cases, participants, providers and facilities, conferences, confidentiality and privacy, and cultural issues, to name a few. Critical issues are explored in part 3 and include discussions of type of offenses, proportionality, family violence, sexual violence, and children and young people. Finally, part 4 discusses how to apply these principles to practice within the criminal justice system. Relevant questions to consider are explored. The glossary defines terms and the notes section contains a questionnaire designed to facilitate discussion about the principles of best practice. Abstract courtesy of National Criminal Justice Reference Service, www.ncjrs.org.

Missouri Sentencing Advisory Commission . Restorative justice is viable prison alternative

One of the charges of the Missouri Sentencing Advisory Commission is to explore real alternatives to imprisonment and report those findings to the Governor and General Assembly. This is a research piece on restorative and reparative justice researched and written for the Commission’s 2005 report. (excerpt)

Home Office. Restorative Justice: the Government's Strategy

The British Government views restorative justice as a strategy for bringing victims and offenders into constructive contact that will bring both healing to the victim and accountability to the offender. The strategy for implementing restorative justice has two elements. The first element involves building high-quality restorative justice practices at all stages of the criminal justice system. This will be done by mandating restorative cautioning by the police; conducting a pilot test of restorative justice as a diversion from prosecution; making reparation a purpose of sentencing; developing action plans to improve the delivery of restorative justice and reparation by the Prison and Probation Services; building on existing progress in restorative justice in the Youth Justice System to assist its incorporation into the adult criminal justice system; increasing the understanding of restorative justice among criminal justice professionals and the general public; and developing a consistent approach to effective restorative justice practice, training and accreditation for restorative justice practitioners, and enabling information sharing among agencies. The second element of the strategy will be to develop an understanding of where restorative justice works best and how it can be fully integrated into the criminal justice system in the long term through further research and the development of policy on key issues related to mainstreaming restorative justice in the criminal justice system. Appended summary of the work plan for implementing the restorative justice strategy. Abstract courtesy of National Criminal Justice Reference Service, www.ncjrs.org.

South African Law Commission. Project 106: Juvenile Justice Report

Following ratification in 1995 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the South African Law Commission was requested to research juvenile justice and make recommendations to the South African Minister of Justice for the reform of this particular area of law. The Commission conducted this research through several stages: an Issue Paper published in 1997 for comment; consultation with relevant government and civil society organizations on the basis of the Issue Paper; a follow up comprehensive Discussion Paper in late 1998, accompanied by a draft Bill for reform of juvenile justice; and a series of consultations on the 1998 Discussion Paper with government departments and non-governmental organizations key to juvenile justice. This document from July 2000 constitutes the culmination of the Commission's research and consultations; it consists of the Commission's submission to the Minister for Justice and Constitutional Development. The report contains a final proposed draft Child Justice Bill and chapters on the following topics: principles and framework for the legislation; age and criminal capacity; pre-trial procedures; detention of children and release from detention; assessment and referral; diversion; preliminary investigation; court procedures; sentencing; legal representation; appeal, review, and monitoring; and confidentiality and expunging of records.

Kittayarak, Kittipong. Restorative Justice in Thailand

In Thailand, like in many other Asian countries, restorative justice is not a new approach but a familiar concept well entrenched in the Thai traditions and culture. Many elements of restorative justice still remain in the traditional way of communal justice in some rural areas. With such solid background in the Thai culture and increasing problems resulted from the shortcomings of conventional criminal justice, it is not surprising to see a growing interest of restorative justice in Thailand. In my presentation, I will examine the experience of Thailand in implementing restorative justice to the Thai criminal justice process. Although restorative justice has been reintroduced in Thailand only recently, and an attempt for its implementation is only in the beginning stage, restorative justice has been very well received by the criminal justice communities and the public. There are also many indications that it is likely to be adopted as a viable alternative to the formal criminal justice process in various types of offenses. (excerpt)