Abstract Key points: Some men who abuse their partners are considered particularly high risk due to the frequency and/or severity of their violence, and their resistance to current intervention strategies. Risk assessment and management practices have become increasingly prominent in agency responses to these offenders. The way in which 'risk' is defined, assessed and managed varies between research studies and between agencies, and does not always reflect the complexities of practice or the lives of domestic violence offenders, victims and survivors. Established approaches to the reduction and management of domestic violence risk have drawn on the traditional justice principles of punishment, deterrence, incapacitation and rehabilitation. The use of these approaches has changed as evidence has accumulated that neither the threat of punishment, nor treatment, is curtailing the risk posed by very dangerous offenders. Emerging approaches to risk assessment and management include a focus on offender surveillance, individualised and comprehensive approaches to treatment, and outcome-orientated partnerships that integrate policing and judicial responses with health and welfare services. Preliminary research suggests that interventions responsive to both perpetrator risk and need are more likely to be effective than interventions that adopt a standardised approach. The social connectedness of the perpetrator is a primary determinant of both his risk and his need, and further research is needed into interventions that reduce risk by addressing the complex needs of offenders.