Authorship Criteria

Justicia Journal applies clear, transparent, and ethical authorship criteria to ensure that every individual listed as an author has made a substantive intellectual contribution to the published work. Authorship is based on both scholarly contribution and accountability for the accuracy, integrity, and ethical compliance of the manuscript.

These criteria are intended to recognize individuals who have contributed meaningfully to the research and publication process, while preventing inappropriate authorship practices, including honorary authorship, ghost authorship, gift authorship, and unauthorized inclusion of individuals in the author list.

This policy is adapted from internationally recognized authorship standards, particularly the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

1. Definition of an Author

An author is an individual who has made a substantial intellectual contribution to the research and manuscript, has approved the final version for publication, and accepts responsibility for the integrity of the work.

All individuals who meet the authorship criteria must be listed as authors. Conversely, individuals who do not meet all criteria must not be listed as authors, although their contributions may be acknowledged in the Acknowledgments section.

2. Authorship Criteria

Justicia Journal requires that every author meets all of the following four criteria:

Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work.
Drafting the manuscript or reviewing it critically for important intellectual content.
Final approval of the version to be published.
Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work, ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Meeting only one or several of these criteria is insufficient for authorship. An individual must fulfill all four criteria to be recognized as an author.

3. Examples of Substantial Contributions

Substantial contributions may include, but are not limited to:

Developing the research idea, research question, or theoretical framework.
Designing the research method, legal analysis framework, or data-collection instrument.
Collecting primary or secondary data.
Conducting legal, doctrinal, empirical, comparative, or socio-legal analysis.
Interpreting research findings and formulating conclusions.
Drafting significant sections of the manuscript.
Critically revising the manuscript for important intellectual content.
Verifying legal sources, court decisions, legislation, references, and data accuracy.

4. Contributions That Do Not Automatically Constitute Authorship

The following contributions alone do not automatically qualify an individual for authorship:

Providing general administrative support.
Providing funding, facilities, or institutional support.
Collecting data without involvement in analysis, interpretation, or manuscript preparation.
Providing language editing, proofreading, or technical formatting services.
Providing general supervision or leadership without substantive intellectual involvement.
Reviewing the manuscript without contributing to its intellectual development.

Individuals who provide these forms of support may be acknowledged in the Acknowledgments section, provided that they consent to being acknowledged.

5. Order of Authors

The order of authors must reflect the relative contribution of each author to the research and manuscript. The first author is generally the individual who has made the most substantial contribution to the conception, execution, analysis, and writing of the work.

The corresponding author is responsible for communication with the Editorial Board, coordinating revisions, ensuring that all co-authors have approved the final manuscript, and responding to editorial or post-publication inquiries.

Any change to the author list or author order after submission must be approved by all authors and communicated formally to the Editorial Board with a clear justification.

6. Corresponding Author Responsibilities

The corresponding author must:

Submit the manuscript on behalf of all authors.
Ensure that all co-authors have reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Ensure that all authors have agreed to the submission and publication of the article.
Communicate editorial decisions, revision requests, and publication matters to all co-authors.
Ensure that all authors comply with the journal’s publication ethics and AI policy.
Respond to questions concerning the accuracy, integrity, and ethical compliance of the published article.

7. Prohibited Authorship Practices

Justicia Journal prohibits the following authorship practices:

Honorary or gift authorship: listing an individual as an author despite the absence of a substantive contribution.
Ghost authorship: omitting an individual who has made a substantial contribution from the author list.
Guest authorship: including an individual solely to enhance the credibility, reputation, or perceived authority of the article.
Unauthorized authorship: adding, removing, or changing authors without the knowledge and consent of all authors.
Coercive authorship: pressuring an individual to be included as an author without meeting the required criteria.
Undisclosed use of AI as an author: listing artificial intelligence tools as authors or co-authors.

8. Artificial Intelligence and Authorship

Artificial Intelligence tools, including generative AI applications, cannot be listed as authors or co-authors. AI cannot take responsibility for the accuracy and integrity of the work, approve the final manuscript, or respond to questions regarding the research.

Authors who use AI or AI-assisted technologies must disclose such use in accordance with the Artificial Intelligence Policy of Justicia Journal. The use of AI does not reduce the responsibility of human authors for the originality, accuracy, and integrity of the manuscript.

9. Author Contributions Statement

All manuscripts with more than one author must include an Author Contributions Statement before the References section. This statement must describe the specific contribution of each author clearly and accurately.

Suggested format:

Author Contributions: Author 1 contributed to conceptualization, methodology, data collection, and original draft preparation. Author 2 contributed to formal analysis, critical revision, and final manuscript approval. All authors have read and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Authors may adapt this statement according to the actual contributions made, provided that the description remains accurate, specific, and verifiable.

10. Authorship Declaration

At the time of submission, the corresponding author must confirm that:

All listed authors meet the authorship criteria.
All authors have approved the final manuscript and agree to its submission.
No individual who meets the authorship criteria has been omitted.
No individual who does not meet the authorship criteria has been included as an author.
All authors have disclosed any conflict of interest, funding source, and use of AI in accordance with journal policy.

11. Changes in Authorship

Any addition, deletion, or rearrangement of author names after the initial submission must be approved by all authors, including any author being added or removed.

The corresponding author must submit a written request to the Editorial Board explaining the reason for the change and attaching confirmation from all authors. The Editorial Board may request additional documentation where necessary.

Changes in authorship after acceptance or publication will be considered only under exceptional circumstances and may require a formal correction or retraction, depending on the nature of the case.

12. Authorship Disputes

In the event of an authorship dispute, the Editorial Board will request clarification and supporting evidence from all parties involved. The journal may consult the authors’ institutions or relevant ethical bodies where necessary.

The Editorial Board will not determine authorship unilaterally. However, the journal may delay, reject, or suspend the publication process until the dispute is resolved appropriately.

13. Acknowledgment of Non-Author Contributors

Individuals who contributed to the research but do not meet all authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately. Acknowledgments may include individuals or institutions that provided technical assistance, language editing, funding, facilities, data access, or general administrative support.

Authors must obtain permission from individuals or institutions before including their names in the Acknowledgments section.

14. Policy Review

This Authorship Criteria policy will be reviewed periodically by the Editorial Board of Justicia Journal to ensure alignment with developments in publication ethics, research integrity standards, and applicable legal requirements.