PROBLEMS OF MEDIATION IN DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CASES

The issues of restorative justice and mediation in the cases of domestic violence are actively investigated by researches and field specialists of many countries. Thus mediation in the cases of domestic violence has to be viewed as a process of settling a complex criminal law conflict. Is it possible to have victim-offender mediation if the victim is highly vulnerable? It is only possible to answer this and other questions after studying the key propositions of restorative justice as a new criminal law paradigm and after researching the international legal experience and standards. The author analyses the reasons for and against the use of mediation is the cases of domestic violence, the practice of some countries (Austria, Greece, Lithuania), as well as the clauses of international documents. The articles stresses that many countries with a far greater experience in this area than Central and Eastern European countries still have not settled the issue of mediation in the cases of domestic violence. The author exmines the most topical issues in this sphere that are settled at the international level, such as, for example, taking into account the opinion of the victim of domestic violence when the court determines the punishment to the offender, as well as the issue of property rights of the offender in the cases of domestic violence and the possibility of his eviction from the dwelling when mediation is used. The results of the research conducted in many countries allow to conclude that a very careful approach is needed for mediation in the cases of domestic violence, this process should follow special rules so that the victims have an oportunity to understand its causes and to make an independent decision regarding the future.