Presentation on the Finnish Victim-Offender Mediation system in the European Forum for Restorative Justice conference in Bilbao, June 6, 2019.

1. ORGANISING
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE
SERVICES: THE CASE OF
FINLAND
Bilbao June 6, 2019
Henrik Elonheimo
Development Manager, National
Institute for Health and
Welfare (THL), Finland
Henrik.Elonheimo@thl.fi

2. KEY ISSUES
 How to organize RJ/VOM services nationwide?
 How to guarantee the quality of the service?
 To what extent can volunteers be used as mediators?
 What kinds of education should mediators have?
 How to cooperate and even replace the formal justice?
 How to ensure access to RJ services?
 How to facilitate RJ sessions?
7.2.2019 Henrik Elonheimo / THL 1

3. Henrik Elonheimo / FinnCrime 2

4. Rikos- ja riita-asioiden sovittelun
palveluntuottajien toimialueet 2018
Aluejaot © MML, 2017
Lapin sovittelutoimisto
Rovaniemen, Ranuan ja
Posion sovittelutoimisto
Vantaan sovittelutoimisto
Päijät-Hämeen
sovittelutoimisto
Ålands medlingsbyrå
Varsinais-Suomen
sovittelutoimisto
Satakunnan
sovittelutoimisto
Pirkanmaan
sovittelutoimisto
Etelä-Pohjanmaan
sovittelutoimisto
Keski-Suomen
sovittelutoimisto
Pohjanmaan
sovittelutoimisto
Pohjois-Suomen
sovittelutoimisto
Kymi-Saimaan
sovittelutoimisto
Pohjois-Karjalan
sovittelutoimisto
Pohjois-Savon
sovittelutoimisto
Länsi-Uusimaan
sovittelutoimisto
Helsingin sovittelutoimisto
Kanta-Hämeen
sovittelutoimisto

5. RESTORATIVE JUSTICE (RJ) IN FINLAND
3 main forms OF RJ
– VOM (dominates)
– Conferencing (emerging)
– Circles (not even discussed)
Henrik Elonheimo

6. MODERN MEDIATION MOVEMENT
COVERS VARIOUS WALKS OF LIFE
1. Family
– Family mediation in courts or by the church
2. Schools / Kindergartens
 Peer mediation program
– Demanding cases can be referred to adults / statutory mediation
3. Work
 Mediation in inter-human (micro) and labor market (macro) conflicts
Henrik Elonheimo

7. 4. Neighborhood conflicts
 Multicultural mediation involving immigrants
 Street mediation
– Rapid and flexible intervention applied to youth
 Environmental mediation
5. Legal system
 Victim-Offender Mediation (VOM)
 Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
– Mediation in courts (civil trials)
6. International peace mediation

8. THE LEGAL STATUS OF RJ ACTORS IN
FINLAND
 VOM is regulated by a special law (Act on Mediation in
Criminal and Certain Civil Cases, into force 2006)
– Coordinated and developed by the National Institute for
Health and Welfare (THL) since 2016
 Other fields of mediation are often projects conducted by
NGO’s, such as The Finnish Forum for Mediation

9. VOM SERVICE PROVIDERS / OFFICES
 18 service providers all over Finland
– Mediation offices are run by municipalities (11), NGOs /
associations (7)
– Local mediation offices recruit the professional staff and
voluntary mediators, train them and guide and support their
work
 THL chooses the service providers and allocates
the state funding to them
– Guides, advises and monitors the mediation offices
Henrik Elonheimo

10. ADMINISTRATION OF VOM IN
FINLAND
Ministry of social affairs and health
THL
Mediation offices (18)
9
Advisory board

11. THE DUTIES OF THL
 Ensures that mediation is available appropriately in the whole country
– Quality control
 Customer feedback
– Form
– Reclamations
 Aims to make mediation procedures uniform; to ensure same for all
service throughout the country; access to mediation regardless of where
one lives
 Collects statistics on mediation
 Organises continuing education for mediators
Henrik Elonheimo

12. THL UNITS CONTRIBUTING TO VOM
 Financial administration
 Communications, marketing, PR
 Legal unit
 Statistical unit
 Mediation subject matter specialists
– Now only 2  No critical mass in developing RJ
7.2.2019 Henrik Elonheimo / THL 11

13. OTHER KEY ACTORS RELATED TO VOM
 Ministry of Social Affairs and Health: the general
management, supervision and monitoring of mediation
services
 Advisory Board: national supervision, monitoring and
development of VOM
– Represented: Ministry of Justice, police, prosecutors, courts,
victim support
Henrik Elonheimo

14. VOM IN FINLAND: LANDMARKS
 1983: 1st project in one city
 2006: Mediation law into effect
 2016: THL to coordinate and develop VOM nationwide
 2017: more than 15 000 cases
 2018: state funding started to increase (now 7.1 million euros)
Henrik Elonheimo / THL 137.2.2019

17. THE FINNISH MEDIATION LAW
The aims:
 To secure the funding of VOM by the state
 To enable long-term evaluation and development of VOM
 To provide the basic framework for VOM
– The law does not determine the actual mediation methods
Henrik Elonheimo

18. WHAT KINDS OF CASES CAN BE
MEDIATED IN FINLAND?
 Basically, all kinds of crimes
– Crimes that are assessed as eligible for mediation, taking into account the nature of the offence, the
relationship between the parties and other issues related to the crime as a whole
– Parties have to be able to understand the meaning of mediation
– Not allowed, if victim is a minor with a special need for protection because of his/her age or the
quality of the crime
– Mediation has to be in harmony with victim’s interests
– The suspect must mostly confess what has happened
 In principle, mediation is available in all phases of the criminal proceedings
 Equally complainant offenses & offenses under public prosecution
 Both children’s and adults’ cases
 As the last resort, mediation office defines whether the matter is suitable for mediation
Henrik Elonheimo

19. CRIME TITLES IN VOM
 Over recent years, around half of all cases have been violence (incl.
domestic violence)
 There have also been cases of
– criminal damage
– theft
– illegal threat
– perjury / defamation, disseminating information violating privacy
– negligent bodily injury
– resistance to a person maintaining public order
– failure to guard an animal
– etc.
Henrik Elonheimo

20. ALSO MINOR CIVIL CASES CAN BE
MEDIATED
 Minor civil disputes may be referred to mediation if it can be
considered expedient (useful, functional)
 Not business-to-business cases, however
Henrik Elonheimo

22. MEDIATION CAN HAVE LEGAL EFFECTS
 Mediation can have various effects on the criminal procedure:
– the police may stop the investigation
– the prosecutor may drop charges
– the judge may impose a lighter penalty or no penalty at all
 The legal authorities consider each case separately and decide how much they
put weight on VOM
 Complainant offences: if victim withdraws his/her request for a penalty, the investigation
is discontinued
 Offences under public prosecution: the prosecutor can press or waive charges
regardless of a mediation agreement and the victim’s preferences
 The parties may apply that a court of law confirms the agreement they have made in
VOM, making it enforceable
Henrik Elonheimo

23. WHO CAN MAKE THE MEDIATION
INITIATIVE?
 The parties (Offender/Suspect/Victim) or their parents
 Police
 Prosecutor
 Other authorities (e.g. social worker)
– Exception: Only the police or prosecutor have the right to refer
domestic violence to mediation
Henrik Elonheimo

24. RJ IS INFORMAL JUSTICE, BUT NOT “JUSTICE
OF THE WILD WEST”: QUALITY SAFEGUARDS
 Mediators are educated
– Balance the relationship of the parties
– Should censor agreements that clearly violate fairness or the fundamental
values of the legal system
 RJ theory guides the action
 Process is structured and safe
 Mediation is voluntary
 Legal instruments guide the action
– International recommendations
– Victim directive
– National mediation law
 Controlled and guided by THL

25. BASIC PRINCIPLES & VALUES OF VOM / RJ
 Facilitative (not evaluative)
 Empowerment
 Voice, free & respectful dialogue
 Safe atmosphere, non-violence
 Responsibility (not a soft option)
 The act is rejected, not the person
– Reintegration
 Learning
 Strenghtening communities and social ties
 Repairing also underlying problems
– Referrals to other services
 Voluntariness
 Confidentiality
Henrik Elonheimo

26. PROFESSIONALS AT MEDIATION OFFICES
 About 100 paid workers in mediation offices
– Chiefs, mediation advisors, clerks
 Recruit, train, supervise, control, guide voluntary mediators
 Must have an appropriate academic degree
– Most of them have a degree in social sciences
– Also eligible: other persons with good knowledge of mediation services
 May also act as mediators in addition to the volunteers
– There are usually two mediators in each case
Henrik Elonheimo

27. VOLUNTARY MEDIATORS
 In Finland, mediation strongly relies on the work of voluntary
mediators (about 1200)
 Not paid but get their costs compensated
 Mediators must
– have completed basic training on mediation (about 54 contact hours)
– have the education, skills and experience required for the task
– be also otherwise suitable for the task
 There are no statutes of the professional background or education of the
lay mediators
Henrik Elonheimo

28. A GOOD MEDIATOR
 Listens and observes actively
 Knows the limits of his/her role: neither a terapist nor a judge
 Takes the back seat”: facilitator
– Takes the lead when necessary
 Sense of justice
 Patient
 Good manners
 Clear and sensitive communication
 Creates a safe atmosphere
 Not embarrassed by difficult situations or people
 Recognises his/her own emotions and can manage them in a professional way
 Life-long learner
7.2.2019 Henrik Elonheimo / THL 27

29. CRITERIA FOR RECRUITING VOLUNTARY
MEDIATORS
 Attention is paid on the applicant’s conception of human beings, motivation,
interpersonal skills
 Applicant’s personal life must be in balance, at least no serious criminal
background
 The choice to serve as a mediator must not be motivated by a need to process
one’s own problems
 Applicants should not have untreated issues with trauma or severe personal
conflicts
 Appointing mediators to each case: The professionals at the mediation office
appoint mediators best suited to each case based on the mediators’ experience
and competence
Henrik Elonheimo

30. WHY WE SHOULD KEEP ON HAVING
VOLUNTEER MEDIATORS
 Nils Christie: Power trap: mediators should not be professionals, otherwise they
become conflict thieves and tend to tell the parties what is best for them
– Can professionals endanger the facilitative approach? Can their working method
become too evaluative?
 Professionals run the risk of jargon
 Paid workers are more expensive, limiting the use of mediation
 Lay mediators offer a form of community participation
 Clients may especially appreciate pro bono work
 Typically, voluntary mediators have completed higher education, anyway
Henrik Elonheimo

31. WHY WE SHOULD ALSO HAVE PROFESSIONAL
MEDIATORS
 RJ cannot totally rely on unpaid volunteer work
 Growing quality demands: Can volunteers live up to them? Can they e.g. commit to long processes with
pre-meetings and follow-ups?
 To receive more cases and more serious cases, the public image of mediation would need to be
improved to build trust among the stakeholders and the general public
 The cases are really important for the parties and mediation can also have legal effects
Mediators need many skills:
– Facilitate encounter between the parties, handle difficult situations
– Balance the relationship between the parties, support the ones in weaker positions, such as
children, make everyone engage in discussions
– Check voluntariness, assess psychic resources
– Follow the RJ theory: e.g. avoid stigmatization, not steal confllicts
– Draft agreements (e.g., working agreements, how to divide resposibility in case of multiple offenders)
– Detect when the agreement is unjust or against fundamental legal priciples
– Refer clients to further services when needed
Henrik Elonheimo

32. COMBINATION OF PROFESSIONALS AND
VOLUNTEERS
 Full professionalism would be too big a step regarding ideology and budget
 Lay & professional mediators can be combined; they can mediate together or divide cases
– E.g., there are professional mediators in mediation of the most serious crimes (where
mediation takes place in prison)
– Street mediation includes professional youth workers
– Domestic violence mediation is becoming more professional
 However, mediators must not steal conflicts
– RJ priciples are important safeguards
 Client-based informal justice, not system-based
Henrik Elonheimo / THL 317.2.2019

33. TRAINING OF MEDIATORS
 We are building a unified training system for mediators
 In addition to the basic course: advanced courses:
 Domestic violence (170 hours)
 Children & Youth (100 hours)
 Multicultural mediation?
 Serious crimes?
 Civil disputes?
 Confrencing method?
Henrik Elonheimo

34. A NATIONWIDE DEVELOPMENT
PROGRAMME FOR VOM 2016-2020
 At THL, we have drafted a nationwide development programme for VOM 2016-2020
– Planned in cooperation with mediation offices
 Aims: to improve:
– Training of mediators
– Data-recording system
– Customer feedback system
– Co-operation with authorities, interest groups and other services (such as victim support)
– Public awareness of mediation
– Enlarge the scale of mediation cases
– Increase direct initiatives from customers
– Geographic areas of mediation offices
– Unify customer processes
– Etc.
Henrik Elonheimo

35. A GUIDEBOOK FOR VOLUNTEER
MEDIATORS
– Rights & duties of a volunteer mediator (how many cases & trainings /
year)
– Compensation norms (travel allowance), insurances, data security
– How to carry out mediation by remote access (skype or phone)
– Wellbeing & recreational activities of mediators
– Retirement of mediators (age 75 recommended)
– Good practices of different offices
7.2.2019 Henrik Elonheimo / THL 34

36. Summary of customer feedback April – December 2018 (N=931), scale 1-5

37. CHALLENGES & VISIONS
 Struggle for more state funding
– Funding limits expansion, although each mediation case costs only 450 euros to taxpayers
 RJ as the 1st alternative
– Also in civil disputes and serious crimes and adult cases
 Developing the role of support persons in VOM (towards conferencing)
 Mediation of family violence is contested and made difficult to gain access
 Mediation is not regularly taught in law schools or police academy
– Referalls to mediation are somewhat arbitrary
 Rather few working compensations
Henrik Elonheimo / THL 367.2.2019

38. TEACHING RJ
– Professionals who direct cases RJ
 Law schools, police academy, teacher training institution…
– Mediators
 Finland lacks professorhips of mediation
 Should or could there be a certificate or common ethical code for all mediators?
Henrik Elonheimo / THL 377.2.2019

39. Organizational development of mediation as a whole
• We need cooperation between ministries – should we get rid of ministries
and concentrate on whole phenomena such as mediation?
• Justice service centre, a multi-door courthouse with various RJ
applications?
• NATIONAL mediation organization instead of various local ones?
• Mediation projects vs solid structures?
• Flexiblity, enthusiasm
• Long-term development
• Professional mediator identity
• Status
• Ozzy Osborne: ”organizations destroy any creative activity”

40. Thank you!
Correspondence:
Henrik.Elonheimo@thl.fi
Henrik Elonheimo