§ 25-2912.01.Restorative justice practices, restorative justice services, or restorative justice programs; activities to repair harm.
Article 29: Dispute Resolution Act and Uniform Mediation Act · Last amended 2019 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceSection 25-2912.01 catalogs the forms restorative justice can take — victim youth conferences, victim-offender mediation, family group conferencing, circles, peer mediation, truancy mediation, and community panels — and explains how these voluntary, facilitated meetings let a victim describe the harm and the person responsible take ownership of repairing it.
Full Text of § 25-2912.01
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Restorative justice practices, restorative justice services, or restorative justice programs include, but are not limited to, victim youth conferences, victim-offender mediation, family group conferences, circles, peer-to-peer mediation, truancy mediation, victim or community panels, and community conferences. Restorative justice programs may involve restorative projects or classes and facilitated meetings attended voluntarily by the victim, the victim's representatives, or a victim surrogate and the victim's supporters, as well as the youth or adult individual who caused harm and that individual's supporters, whether voluntarily or following a referral for assessment by court order. These meetings may also include community members, when appropriate. By engaging the parties to the offense or harm in voluntary dialogue, restorative justice provides an opportunity for healing for the victim and the individual who harmed the victim by:
(1) Holding the individual who caused harm accountable and providing the individual a platform to accept responsibility and gain empathy for the harm he or she caused to the victim and community;
(2) Providing the victim a platform to describe the impact that the harm had upon himself or herself or his or her family and to identify detriments experienced or any losses incurred;
(3) Providing the opportunity to enter into a reparation plan agreement; and
(4) Enabling the victim and the individual who caused harm the opportunity to agree on consequences to repair the harm, to the extent possible. This includes, but is not limited to, apologies, community service, reparation, restitution, restoration, and counseling.
Source
Laws 2019, LB595, § 11.
Plain-English Summary
Section 25-2912.01 gives content to the term “restorative justice” that section 25-2903 defines by cross-reference. It lists the practices that count: victim youth conferences, victim-offender mediation, family group conferences, circles, peer-to-peer mediation, truancy mediation, victim or community panels, and community conferences, along with restorative projects, classes, and facilitated meetings built around the same idea.
The people at the table can include the victim, the victim’s representatives or a victim surrogate, and the victim’s supporters, alongside the youth or adult who caused the harm and that person’s supporters. Community members can join when appropriate. Participation can be voluntary from the start, or it can follow a court-ordered referral for assessment — but the meeting itself remains voluntary even then.
The statute names four things this dialogue is meant to accomplish: holding the person who caused harm accountable while giving that person a chance to accept responsibility and understand the harm done; giving the victim a platform to describe the impact and identify losses; opening the door to a reparation plan agreement; and letting the two sides agree on consequences that repair the harm as far as possible — an apology, community service, restitution, restoration, or counseling among the possibilities named.
Frequently Asked Questions
What practices count as “restorative justice” under Nebraska law?
Victim youth conferences, victim-offender mediation, family group conferences, circles, peer-to-peer mediation, truancy mediation, victim or community panels, community conferences, and related restorative projects or classes.
Who takes part in a restorative justice meeting?
The victim, the victim’s representatives or a victim surrogate, and the victim’s supporters, along with the youth or adult who caused the harm and that person’s supporters, and community members when appropriate.
Is a restorative justice meeting always voluntary?
Attendance is described as voluntary, even when the individual who caused harm was referred for assessment by court order.
What is a reparation plan agreement?
An agreement the parties reach on consequences meant to repair the harm caused, which can include an apology, community service, restitution, restoration, or counseling.
What are the four goals restorative justice is meant to accomplish, per this section?
Holding the person who caused harm accountable, giving the victim a platform to describe the impact, opening the door to a reparation plan agreement, and letting the parties agree on consequences that repair the harm.
Can restorative justice address truancy or school-based conflicts?
Yes. Truancy mediation and disputes involving youth in educational settings are specifically listed among restorative justice practices.
Source & verification. Section text and the amendment-history citation are
reproduced verbatim from the Nebraska Legislature, Revisor of Statutes, enacted by the
Nebraska Legislature. Last verified July 22, 2026. ·
Official source
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