Journal Policies

The Indonesian Journal of International Clinical Legal Education (ICCLE) is a scholarly journal dedicated to the publication and dissemination of original research and scholarly contributions in clinical legal education and related areas of legal scholarship. The journal is committed to academic integrity, editorial independence, transparent peer review, responsible research practices, and the dissemination of reliable scholarly knowledge.

These policies establish the principles and procedures governing manuscript submission, editorial assessment, peer review, research integrity, publication ethics, open access, copyright, and the preservation of the scholarly record. Authors, editors, reviewers, and other parties involved in the publication process are expected to comply with the policies applicable to their roles.

ICCLE seeks to align its publishing practices with recognized standards of responsible scholarly publishing, including relevant guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). The journal's policies are intended to promote fairness, transparency, accountability, and the responsible communication of legal scholarship.

1. Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

ICCLE is committed to maintaining the integrity of scholarly publishing. Authors must submit original work, acknowledge relevant sources, report research accurately, disclose competing interests, and comply with applicable legal and ethical requirements. Editors and reviewers must perform their responsibilities fairly, confidentially, and impartially.

Research and publication misconduct may include fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, inappropriate manipulation of citations, duplicate or redundant publication, undisclosed conflicts of interest, false authorship claims, and other practices that undermine the reliability of scholarly research.

Allegations of misconduct are assessed carefully and confidentially. The journal may request explanations, supporting documents, or institutional clarification where appropriate. Parties concerned should be given a reasonable opportunity to respond before a final decision is made, subject to the circumstances and applicable legal requirements.

Depending on the findings, the journal may reject a manuscript, request revisions, publish a correction or expression of concern, retract an article, or take other appropriate action to protect the scholarly record.

ICCLE follows relevant principles and guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), including guidance on publication ethics, peer review, authorship, research misconduct, corrections, and retractions.

Further guidance: COPE | COPE Core Practices.

2. Peer Review Process

ICCLE applies a double-blind peer review process to evaluate the academic quality, originality, relevance, and scholarly contribution of submitted manuscripts. Under this process, authors and reviewers are not informed of one another's identities through the journal's review procedures.

2.1. Initial Editorial Assessment

All submitted manuscripts undergo an initial assessment by the editors to determine whether they comply with the journal's submission guidelines, formatting requirements, focus and scope, originality requirements, and basic standards of scholarly quality. Manuscripts that do not meet these requirements may be rejected before external peer review.

2.2. External Peer Review

Manuscripts that pass the initial editorial assessment are sent to at least two reviewers with relevant expertise, specialization, or experience in the subject matter. Reviewers are selected according to their academic competence and the relevance of their expertise to the manuscript under consideration.

Reviewers assess the originality of the manuscript, clarity of presentation, quality of analysis, use of sources, relevance to legal studies and clinical legal education, and contribution to the advancement of knowledge. Where appropriate, reviewers may also evaluate the suitability of the research methods, the quality of the evidence, and the validity of the conclusions.

2.3. Editorial Decision

The editorial team considers the reviewers' comments and recommendations before making a publication decision. The final decision rests with the responsible editor in accordance with the journal's editorial policies. Reviewer recommendations inform the decision but do not automatically determine the outcome.

ICCLE applies the following editorial decisions:

• Accepted: The manuscript is accepted without further substantive revision.
• Accepted with Minor Revisions: The author is required to make limited revisions within the period specified by the editor.
• Major Revisions Required: The author must substantially revise the manuscript and resubmit it for further editorial assessment and, where appropriate, additional peer review.
• Rejected: The manuscript is not accepted for publication. Reasons may include being outside the journal's scope, substantial technical or analytical weaknesses, inadequate clarity, insufficient scholarly contribution, or failure to meet publication ethics requirements.

2.4. Reviewer Confidentiality and Impartiality

Reviewers must treat manuscripts and review materials as confidential documents. They must provide objective, constructive, and evidence-based assessments, disclose potential conflicts of interest, and decline assignments where a conflict could compromise impartiality. Authors are expected to respond to reviewer comments professionally and address requested revisions adequately.

The journal seeks to protect reviewer anonymity and author confidentiality throughout the review process. Manuscripts should be prepared for anonymous review, and identifying information should be removed from the files provided to reviewers where necessary.

3. Section Policies

ICCLE organizes its published content into sections according to the type and purpose of each contribution. Submission eligibility, editorial assessment, and peer review requirements depend on the section in which a manuscript is submitted. The journal identifies below the intended submission and review arrangements for its principal content types.

Section	Open Submissions	Peer Reviewed
Editorial	No*	Editorial assessment
Editorial Commentary	No*	Editorial assessment or external review as appropriate
Research Articles	Yes	Yes
Review Articles	Yes	Yes
Book Reviews	Yes	Yes
Case Notes	Yes	Yes

*Editorial and editorial commentary submissions are treated as editorially commissioned or managed content unless the journal explicitly opens these sections to unsolicited submissions. The journal must ensure that the section settings in OJS reflect its actual editorial practice. The review status of each content type should be stated accurately and consistently.

4. Authorship and Contributorship Policy

Authorship must reflect a genuine scholarly contribution to the work. All listed authors should have made a meaningful contribution to the research or manuscript, participated in drafting or critically revising the work, approved the final version, and accepted responsibility for their contributions.

Individuals who do not meet the applicable authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately rather than listed as authors. Gift authorship, guest authorship, ghost authorship, and the omission of legitimate contributors are unacceptable.

The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all authors approve the submitted manuscript and agree to its submission to ICCLE. Changes to authorship after submission require a clear explanation and the written agreement of all affected authors, subject to editorial approval.

Authors must disclose relevant contributions and ensure that the originality statement and other required declarations are completed in accordance with the journal's submission requirements.

Further guidance: COPE Authorship and Contributorship Guidance.

5. Plagiarism and Originality Policy

Plagiarism and inappropriate self-plagiarism are not permitted in ICCLE. All submitted manuscripts must represent original scholarly work and appropriately acknowledge the sources of ideas, quotations, data, and other materials. Quotations, paraphrases, and reused material must be cited in accordance with accepted academic standards.

The editorial board screens submitted manuscripts using Turnitin or an appropriate similarity-detection tool. Similarity reports are assessed to identify overlapping text and potential originality concerns. Authors must ensure that the manuscript contains proper citations and that any permitted reuse of previously published material is transparent.

The journal may also reject a manuscript or initiate further examination where substantive plagiarism, unattributed reuse, duplicate submission, or other originality concerns are identified, regardless of the overall similarity score.

Before publication, authors must provide the required written confirmation through the journal's Originality Statement. At least one author must sign the statement after obtaining the agreement of the co-authors, where applicable.

Originality Statement: Access the Originality Statement Form.

6. Allegations of Research Misconduct

ICCLE takes allegations of research misconduct seriously, whether raised before or after publication. Concerns may relate to fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, unethical research, manipulated citations, duplicate publication, undisclosed conflicts of interest, false authorship claims, or other practices that may compromise research integrity.

When a concern is raised, the editors assess the available information and may request explanations, supporting documentation, or clarification from authors and relevant institutions. The journal seeks to handle allegations confidentially, fairly, and proportionately while giving the parties concerned an appropriate opportunity to respond.

Where necessary, the journal may suspend editorial processing, reject a manuscript, publish a correction or expression of concern, retract an article, or take other appropriate action based on the evidence and the seriousness of the issue.

7. Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest Policy

Authors, editors, and reviewers must disclose financial, professional, institutional, personal, or other relationships that could influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, their judgment. A competing interest does not necessarily invalidate a manuscript or review, but it must be disclosed and managed appropriately.

Authors should include relevant disclosures in their submissions. Reviewers must notify the editor of any competing interest before accepting or continuing a review assignment. Editors who have a conflict of interest in a submission must not manage the manuscript or determine its outcome.

The editorial team is responsible for assessing disclosed interests and taking reasonable steps to protect the fairness and independence of editorial decisions. Where necessary, another qualified editor may be assigned to manage the manuscript.

8. Complaints and Appeals Policy

ICCLE provides a mechanism for authors and other relevant parties to raise complaints about editorial procedures, publication decisions, reviewer conduct, or alleged breaches of publication ethics. Complaints should be submitted through the journal's official editorial contact channel with a clear explanation and relevant supporting information.

Appeals against editorial decisions must provide substantive grounds, such as a significant factual misunderstanding, a demonstrable procedural error, or relevant information that was not adequately considered. Disagreement with a decision alone does not guarantee reconsideration.

Complaints and appeals are assessed fairly and impartially by an appropriate editor or designated representative. Where a complaint concerns the editor responsible for the matter, it should be referred to another appropriate person who can assess it independently. The journal aims to handle complaints confidentially and without retaliation against individuals who raise concerns in good faith.

9. Research Ethics and Ethical Oversight

Authors must ensure that their research complies with applicable legal requirements, institutional rules, and recognized ethical standards. Where research involves human participants, interviews, confidential case materials, personal data, or vulnerable individuals, authors must address informed consent, privacy, confidentiality, and any necessary ethics approval.

For clinical legal education research, authors must take particular care to protect clients, students, community members, and other individuals whose identities or circumstances may be sensitive. Case descriptions and supporting materials must be anonymized where necessary. Confidential legal information must not be disclosed without an appropriate lawful and ethical basis.

Authors should state whether ethics approval or informed consent was required and obtained, or explain why it was not required. Editors may request supporting documentation where necessary to assess ethical compliance.

10. Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies Policy

Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and accountability of submitted manuscripts, including content produced with the assistance of generative artificial intelligence or other AI-assisted technologies.

AI tools cannot be listed as authors because they cannot assume responsibility for the work, approve the final manuscript, or respond to questions concerning its integrity. Authors must verify AI-assisted outputs, check citations and references, and ensure that the manuscript does not contain fabricated sources, misleading statements, plagiarized material, or confidential information disclosed without authorization.

The use of generative AI for substantive content creation, analysis, translation, or other material scholarly tasks should be disclosed in the manuscript or in the manner specified by the journal. Routine spelling, grammar, and formatting assistance need not be disclosed unless required by the journal's submission instructions.

Editors and reviewers must not upload confidential manuscripts or review materials to external AI services where doing so could compromise confidentiality or violate applicable policies. AI-generated assessments must not replace independent human editorial judgment.

11. Data Availability and Reproducibility

Authors should provide transparent descriptions of the sources, methods, materials, and analytical procedures supporting their conclusions. Where data or research materials can lawfully and ethically be shared, authors are encouraged to provide access through an appropriate repository or a clear data availability statement.

Data sharing must respect privacy, informed consent, confidentiality, legal professional privilege, intellectual property rights, and other applicable restrictions. Authors should explain any limitations on data access and must not disclose identifiable or confidential information without an appropriate legal and ethical basis.

12. Ownership, Management, and Editorial Independence

ICCLE operates through an editorial structure responsible for overseeing manuscript submission, assessment, peer review coordination, revision assessment, copyediting, proofreading, and publication preparation. Depending on their assigned roles, the editorial team may include an Editor-in-Chief, managing editors, editorial board members, section editors, reviewers, and other personnel supporting editorial operations.

The journal is committed to editorial independence in the assessment and selection of submitted manuscripts. Editorial decisions should be based on scholarly merit, originality, relevance to the journal's focus and scope, methodological or analytical quality, peer review where applicable, and compliance with publication ethics.

Institutional ownership, sponsorship, commercial interests, or other external relationships must not exert improper influence over editorial decisions. The journal's ownership, publisher, institutional affiliation, and editorial responsibilities should be identified transparently on its official website.

The editorial team is responsible for applying journal policies consistently, protecting confidential information, managing competing interests, and maintaining appropriate procedures for manuscript handling and publication.

13. Open Access and Access Policy

ICCLE adopts an open access policy under which readers may access, read, download, and save available published scholarly articles without subscription fees. This policy aims to broaden the dissemination of clinical legal education and legal research, increase the visibility of scholarly publications, and facilitate the exchange of knowledge among academics, legal practitioners, researchers, students, and the wider public.

13.1. Access to Articles and Archives

Articles in the latest issues and archives of previous issues are made available through the journal's online platform without subscription fees, subject to the content available on the platform. Readers are not required to pay or subscribe to read and download available full-text articles.

13.2. Free Access to Full Text

Access to available full-text articles is not restricted by payment, institutional subscriptions, or paid membership. Articles may be used to support education, clinical legal education, legal research, policy analysis, legal practice, and other academic activities, subject to the applicable copyright and licensing terms.

13.3. Commitment to Open Knowledge

ICCLE supports open access as a means of broadening the dissemination of research findings, advancing clinical legal education and legal scholarship, and strengthening the contribution of research to the development, implementation, and improvement of law.

14. Copyright and Licensing Policy

Copyright and reuse rights for works published in ICCLE are governed by the journal's published copyright and licensing terms. The journal's policy provides for the use of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0), subject to the terms of that license and any applicable rights in third-party materials.

Under CC BY-SA 4.0, users may share and adapt licensed material for lawful purposes, including commercial use, provided that they give appropriate attribution, link to the license, indicate whether changes have been made, and distribute adaptations under the same license.

Authors must ensure that they have the necessary rights or permissions for third-party content included in their manuscripts. Any material not covered by the article's license should be identified appropriately.

License information: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

15. Publication Fees and Financial Transparency

ICCLE should clearly disclose any article processing charges, submission fees, publication fees, or other author-facing charges on its official website. If no fees apply, the journal should state this explicitly. Any applicable charges, waiver arrangements, and refund conditions should be explained before authors submit their manuscripts.

Editorial decisions must remain independent of payment, sponsorship, or commercial considerations. Payment of a fee, where applicable, does not guarantee acceptance and must not influence peer review outcomes.

16. Post-Publication Discussions and Corrections Policy

ICCLE recognizes the importance of post-publication discussion in maintaining the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record. Readers and researchers may raise substantive concerns about published articles through the journal's official editorial contact channel.

The editors assess such concerns fairly and may consult the authors, reviewers, or relevant experts as appropriate. Where a published article contains an error that affects its accuracy or interpretation, the journal may publish a correction. More serious concerns may lead to an expression of concern or retraction, depending on the evidence and circumstances.

Corrections and retraction notices should be clearly identified, explain the reason for the action, and be linked to the affected article to preserve transparency and the integrity of the scholarly record.

17. Retraction, Withdrawal, Removal, and Replacement Policy

ICCLE is committed to preserving the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record. Published articles are generally retained as part of the permanent scholarly record. Withdrawal, retraction, removal, or replacement should be undertaken only when justified by the circumstances and in accordance with publication ethics and applicable legal requirements.

Retraction may be initiated by the editors, authors, or relevant institutions. Grounds may include substantial plagiarism, duplicate publication, fraudulent data, fabricated authorship, serious research misconduct, or other issues that make the publication or its findings unreliable. The journal evaluates the evidence and gives the parties concerned an appropriate opportunity to respond.

17.1. Article Withdrawal

Withdrawal generally applies to a manuscript that has not yet been formally published. It may be appropriate where a manuscript was submitted or published elsewhere in violation of the journal's policies, contains serious authorship or originality problems, or is affected by another substantiated ethical concern. Authors requesting withdrawal must provide a written explanation to the editorial board. The editor determines the appropriate action in accordance with the journal's procedures.

17.2. Article Retraction

Retraction may be necessary when a published article contains findings that are unreliable, involves serious research misconduct, infringes publication ethics, or must be formally withdrawn from the literature for another substantial reason. Retraction is intended to alert readers to problems with the published work and does not necessarily mean that every statement in the article is invalid.

Where an article is retracted, ICCLE should:

• Publish a clearly titled retraction notice explaining the reason for retraction.
• Identify and link the notice to the original article and include it in the journal's publication record.
• Retain the original article where legally and technically appropriate, with a clear retraction notice or watermark on the article file.
• Ensure that the article's status is clearly communicated in the online version and relevant metadata.
• Remove the full text only where exceptional legal or safety circumstances require removal.

17.3. Article Removal for Legal Reasons

In exceptional circumstances, an article may need to be removed from public access where it is clearly unlawful, subject to a valid court order, infringes legal rights, or presents a serious and substantiated legal or safety risk. Removal must be proportionate to the circumstances and documented by the journal.

Where removal is necessary, the journal should preserve bibliographic metadata where legally permissible and display a notice explaining that the content has been removed for legal reasons, without disclosing information that must remain confidential.

17.4. Article Replacement

In exceptional cases, such as where an article contains a serious error that could create a significant risk if its findings are relied upon, the journal may consider replacement with a corrected version. The decision must be made by the editors after assessment of the circumstances and consultation with the authors where appropriate.

The publication record should clearly link the original article, the retraction or replacement notice, and the corrected version. The notice should explain the reason for the replacement and preserve a transparent history of the changes.

Further guidance: COPE Retraction Guidelines.

18. Digital Preservation and Archiving Policy

ICCLE recognizes the importance of preserving published scholarly content for long-term access and maintaining the integrity of the academic record. The journal should identify its actual digital preservation arrangements, including the systems or repositories used to preserve published content and support recovery if content becomes unavailable.

Any statement that ICCLE participates in LOCKSS (Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe), CLOCKSS (Controlled Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe), or another preservation network must accurately reflect a verified participation or preservation arrangement. The journal should provide relevant information about its archiving arrangements and applicable access conditions on its official website.

19. Publication Frequency and Journal Management

ICCLE manages its publication process through an editorial structure responsible for manuscript receipt, initial screening, peer review coordination, revision assessment, copyediting, proofreading, and publication preparation. Editors, editorial board members, reviewers, and publishing personnel are expected to perform their responsibilities professionally and in accordance with the journal's policies.

The journal should publish its publication frequency, issue schedule, and any applicable procedures for special issues or supplementary content clearly on its official website. Publication schedules should be maintained consistently, and any significant changes should be communicated transparently.

20. Commitment to Quality and Continuous Improvement

ICCLE is committed to periodically reviewing its editorial policies and publishing practices to maintain academic quality, ethical integrity, transparency, and accessibility. Policy revisions should reflect changes in recognized publication ethics guidance, legal requirements, scholarly communication practices, and the journal's operational needs.

Through its management and editorial arrangements, ICCLE seeks to maintain the quality, credibility, and integrity of its scholarly publications and to contribute to the advancement of clinical legal education, legal research, and legal practice through the publication of credible and original academic work.