Between Paradigm Shift and Institutionalization

Ten Years of Restorative Justice in the Brazilian Judiciary in Light of CNJ Resolution No. 225/2016

Abstract

This article examines the ten years of the National Policy on Restorative Justice within the Brazilian Judiciary, established by CNJ Resolution No. 225/2016, from the perspective of the tension between the proposal of a paradigm shift and the challenges arising from its institutionalization. The objective is to assess to what extent the incorporation of Restorative Justice as a judicial public policy has generated effective advances in the management of conflicts and violence, as well as to identify the structural, normative, and cultural limits that still hinder its consolidation.

A qualitative method is adopted, of a theoretical-analytical and critical-descriptive nature, based on a review of national and international literature on Restorative Justice, normative analysis of CNJ Resolution No. 225/2016, and examination of institutional documents and empirical research, with particular emphasis on the report Pilotando a Justiça Restaurativa: o papel do Poder Judiciário [Piloting Restorative Justice within the Judiciary].

The findings indicate relevant advances, such as the formal integration of restorative practices into the courts, the expansion of experiences across different branches of the justice system, investment in training processes, and the inclusion of the topic in the national judicial agenda. Nevertheless, persistent challenges remain, including the risk of excessive formalization, the managerial instrumentalization of practices, difficulties in qualitative evaluation of outcomes, and the impacts associated with structural power asymmetries.

It is concluded that Restorative Justice, upon completing a decade as a national judicial policy, constitutes a relevant institutional experience, albeit still contested, whose legitimacy depends on the preservation of its ethical foundations, the quality of implemented practices, and the strengthening of a legal culture compatible with the restorative perspective.