The accelerating pace of technological transformations, contrasted with the slowness and formalism inherent in traditional legal proceedings, has paved the way for the emergence of new paradigms of dispute resolution. Within this context, the transition of criminal mediation into virtual environments has been proposed as a mechanism grounded in the philosophy of restorative justice, which perceives crime not merely as a violation of a legal rule, but as a rupture in the relationships between the parties. The central question of the present research is: despite its potential to facilitate the process, what challenges does the use of electronic platforms in criminal mediation pose to the realization of restorative objectives? Employing a descriptive-analytical approach and drawing on the foundations of restorative justice, particularly Braithwaite’s theory of “reintegrative shaming,” this study examines the challenges of criminal mediation in electronic environments.
The findings indicate that reduced face-to-face interaction and difficulties in conveying emotional cues and body language, alongside threats to confidentiality and information security and inequalities in access to technology, may undermine the offender’s acceptance of responsibility, empathy, responsible engagement with the victim, and social reintegration, thereby creating conditions for the mere formalization of settlements. Accordingly, the effectiveness of this approach depends not merely on the technical and legal feasibility of conducting mediation electronically, but also on the capacity of the electronic environment to preserve the substantive components of restorative justice, including the offender’s responsible confrontation with the consequences of their conduct, the victim’s meaningful participation, acceptance of responsibility, restoration of damaged relationships, and social reintegration. Therefore, widespread implementation of online criminal mediation cannot be recommended without due consideration of these requirements.