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Public Lecture Title: Restorative vs Adversarial Justice:  A New Paradigm for Addressing Crime and Conflict

Thursday, February 9, 2023, 5:00 pm, University Chapel

"The Restorative Justice Program at the DC Office of the Attorney General is the only such program within a prosecutor’s office in the country. This talk will explore how cooperation, healing and redemption can operate within – and potentially transform – an adversarial system of justice."

Seema Gajwani’s work focuses on restorative justice practices, in which those affected by a crime – victim, offender, and other community members – are brought together to participate in a reconciliatory process, usually with the help of a facilitator. Restorative justice focuses on repairing harm and rebuilding relationships in the community. Its three interrelated and essential elements are to encounter, repair, and transform.

Ms. Gajwani’s career has addressed criminal justice from multiple vantage points. During law school she interned at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the King County Defender Association in Seattle, and the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana. She began her career as a trial attorney at the D.C. Public Defender Service and then ran the Criminal Justice Program at the Public Welfare Foundation in Washington, D.C. The latter position focused on improving criminal and juvenile justice systems across the country, particularly with regard to pretrial detention reform and prosecutorial culture change.

Ms. Gajwani is a frequent public speaker and advocate for restorative justice practices. In 2019 she was selected to be an Obama Foundation Fellow for her work.

Ms. Gajwani was educated at Northwestern University and the New York University School of Law.