修復式正義是一個既哲學又實務的概念，涵蓋了罪案預防，罪犯更生、衝突處理及社區調解等範疇，是近年來在犯罪學急促發展的概念之一。修復式正義的重點是透過多方參與的會議或措施，讓加害人向受害人或有關人士表達悔意、請求饒恕，並作出物質或心靈上的補償。近十年間，與修復式正義有關的司法措施亦相繼地在大中華地區漸漸試辦，本文首先簡略提及修復式正義在西方之發展情況，透過文獻回顧手法，描述修復式正義的焦點及其在香港和大陸之應用。文章指出香港在英國殖民地統治的150多年內，基本上是採納一種保護主義來處理偏差少年問題，這些措施分別由警方、法院、社會福利署、懲教署及非政府機構管理，修復式正義在香港發展較慢，而且仍沒有被納入刑事司法制度內。相反地，修復式正義在短短的數年間，在中國大陸的少年司法系統中的應用愈來愈廣泛，而且已在不同的省市中日漸實施。有關部門透過刑事和解會議，讓被害人和加害人達成諒解，而國家專門機關則不再追究加害人的刑事責任。總結而言，懲罰性司法和禁閉式安置措施是昂貴的，而且對少年成長是有負面的影響，採用社區為本的修復式正義措施可能是一個更合適的選擇。

Restorative justice is a philosophical as well as a practical concept, which covers areas such as crime prevention, offender rehabilitation, conflict management and community mediation. This is one of the criminological concepts which have been developed rapidly in recent years. The focus of restorative justice is reconciliation which allows offenders to express remorse to victims or any person concerned through conferences or measures, and to provide forums for forgiveness and restoration. In recent decades, we have also seen a rapid development of restorative justice in Greater China. This paper will firstly highlight the development of restorative justice in the West and its application in Hong Kong and China based on literature review. This paper asserts that Hong Kong has basically adopted protectionism in dealing with the youth problem. The statutory measures used are operated by various departments including the Police Force, Courts, Social Welfare Department, Correctional Services Department and non-governmental organizations. Nevertheless, restorative justice in Hong Kong has been slowly developed, and it has not yet been incorporated into the formal criminal justice system. In contrast, restorative justice for juvenile in China is widely recognized, and it has been gradually implemented in different cities and provinces. In China, relevant governmental departments are involved in facilitating the restoration between victims and offenders with the help of criminal reconciliation conferences. If reconciliation is completed, governmental authorities will not further prosecute the offenders. In sum, retributive justice and custodial measures are expensive, and they may also induce all kinds of negative impacts on juveniles’ healthy development. Overall, a community-based restorative justice measure would be a more appropriate choice for youth crime prevention.