1. Commitment to Publication Ethics

Nyayavimarsha is committed to maintaining integrity, fairness, transparency and academic independence in legal scholarship.

The Journal's publication ethics framework is informed by recognised principles of responsible scholarly publishing, including guidance issued by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), wherever relevant to the nature of legal research and publication.

All authors, editors, reviewers and contributors are expected to observe high standards of academic and professional conduct.

2. Editorial Independence and Publication Decisions

Decisions concerning the acceptance, revision or rejection of manuscripts shall be made on the basis of academic merit, originality, relevance to the Journal's scope, quality of legal reasoning, research integrity and compliance with the Journal's editorial requirements.

Editorial decisions shall not be influenced by the author's race, caste, ethnicity, nationality, sex, gender, religion, political opinion, institutional affiliation or other irrelevant personal considerations.

The Editor or authorised Editorial Board members may consult reviewers or subject-matter experts before arriving at a publication decision.

The final decision regarding publication rests with the Journal.

3. Review of Submissions

Research manuscripts submitted for publication may undergo preliminary editorial screening followed by the review process prescribed by Nyayavimarsha for the relevant category of submission.

Not every category of content appearing on the Nyayavimarsha website is necessarily externally peer reviewed. Current-affairs pieces, editorial commentary, interviews, announcements, invited contributions or other non-research material may undergo editorial review instead.

Nyayavimarsha shall not describe a contribution as peer reviewed unless it has undergone the review process applicable to that designation.

4. Fairness and Impartiality

Editors and reviewers shall assess manuscripts objectively and in good faith.

Academic disagreement with an author's conclusions, ideological position or interpretation of the law shall not by itself constitute a ground for rejection where the work otherwise satisfies appropriate standards of scholarship.

5. Confidentiality

Manuscripts received for review shall be treated as confidential documents.

Editors, reviewers and persons involved in the editorial process shall not disclose unpublished manuscripts or information concerning their contents except where disclosure is reasonably necessary for the review, editorial or publication process.

Unpublished material contained in a submitted manuscript shall not be used by an editor or reviewer for personal research, publication, professional advantage or any other improper purpose.

6. Originality and Acknowledgment of Sources

Authors must ensure that their submissions constitute original scholarly work.

Ideas, arguments, language, data or material derived from another source must be appropriately acknowledged and cited in accordance with accepted academic standards and the Journal's citation requirements.

Direct quotations must be clearly identified and properly attributed.

Authors must not misrepresent another person's work or ideas as their own.

7. Multiple and Duplicate Submissions

A manuscript submitted to Nyayavimarsha should not simultaneously be under consideration for publication by another journal or publication unless the Journal has expressly agreed otherwise.

Authors must disclose any substantial previous publication, circulation or dissemination of the manuscript or closely related material where such disclosure is necessary for the Journal to determine originality or publication eligibility.

Redundant or duplicate publication that misleadingly presents substantially the same work as a new publication is prohibited.

8. Authorship and Contributorship

Authorship must be limited to persons who have made a substantial intellectual contribution to the conception, research, analysis or drafting of the manuscript and who accept responsibility for the work.

The corresponding author must ensure that:

(a) all persons who qualify for authorship are appropriately identified;

(b) persons who have not made a sufficient contribution are not improperly listed as authors;

(c) all co-authors have reviewed and approved the final manuscript; and

(d) all co-authors consent to its submission for publication.

Persons who assisted the research but do not qualify for authorship may be acknowledged where appropriate.

9. Conflicts of Interest

Authors must disclose any financial, professional, institutional, personal or other competing interest that could reasonably be perceived as affecting the research, analysis or conclusions contained in their submission.

Reviewers must disclose any conflict that may affect their ability to evaluate a manuscript impartially and should decline the review where appropriate.

Editors handling a manuscript must recuse themselves where a conflict of interest could reasonably call their impartiality into question. The manuscript should then be assigned to another appropriate editor.

The existence of a conflict of interest does not necessarily prevent publication; transparency and appropriate management of the conflict are essential.

10. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are responsible for:

• the originality and integrity of their work;
• the accuracy of quotations, references and legal authorities;
• obtaining permission for third-party copyrighted material wherever required;
• disclosing relevant conflicts of interest;
• ensuring appropriate authorship attribution;
• informing the Journal of significant errors discovered before or after publication; and
• cooperating with legitimate editorial inquiries concerning the integrity of their work.

Fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, deliberate citation manipulation and other forms of academic misconduct are prohibited.

11. Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers must:

• conduct reviews objectively and respectfully;
• maintain confidentiality;
• disclose relevant conflicts of interest;
• refrain from using unpublished material for personal advantage;
• identify significant scholarly or citation concerns where reasonably possible; and
• provide reasoned comments intended to assist the Journal in reaching an appropriate editorial decision.

Personal criticism of authors is inappropriate.

12. Responsibilities of Editors

Editors shall seek to preserve the academic integrity and independence of the Journal.

Editors should:

• apply editorial standards consistently;
• protect the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts;
• manage conflicts of interest appropriately;
• take allegations of academic misconduct seriously;
• provide authors a fair opportunity to respond to significant allegations concerning their work; and
• issue corrections, clarifications, withdrawals or retractions where warranted.

13. Errors in Published Work

Where an author becomes aware of a material error or inaccuracy in a published contribution, the author should promptly inform Nyayavimarsha and cooperate in determining the appropriate corrective action.

Nyayavimarsha may publish a correction, clarification, editorial notice, expression of concern, withdrawal or retraction depending upon the nature and seriousness of the issue.

14. Allegations of Misconduct

Concerns regarding plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, authorship disputes, undisclosed conflicts of interest, citation manipulation or other unethical publication practices may be reported to Nyayavimarsha.

The Journal shall ordinarily:

1. make a preliminary assessment of the allegation;
2. seek relevant information or evidence where necessary;
3. provide the concerned author or person a reasonable opportunity to respond;
4. consider the matter impartially; and
5. determine appropriate editorial action.

Serious matters may, where justified, be referred to the relevant institution, organisation or competent authority.

The Journal may investigate ethical concerns discovered even after publication.

15. Post-Publication Action

Nyayavimarsha is committed to preserving the integrity of the scholarly record.

Where a serious problem is established after publication, the Journal may correct, retract, withdraw or otherwise appropriately mark the published work rather than silently altering the scholarly record.

Editorial action shall be proportionate to the nature of the issue concerned.