Samenvatting

Restorative justice has frequently been presented as a new criminal justice paradigm, and as something that is radically different from punishment. The author argues that this ‘oppositioning’ against criminal law is problematic, partly because the restorative justice movement remains too much on the margins of the criminal justice system. Restorative justice could reasonably be more widely adopted as a new form of punishment, which could potentially increase the use of restorative justice for the benefit of victims, offenders and society at large.