Authorship & Contributorship Policy

The Indonesian Journal of Criminal Law Studies (IJCLS) is committed to ensuring transparency, accountability, and integrity in authorship and scholarly contributions. All individuals listed as authors must have made a meaningful intellectual contribution to the manuscript and accept responsibility for the integrity of the work. This policy follows relevant guidance issued by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

1. Authorship Principles

Authorship must reflect a genuine intellectual contribution to the research and manuscript. An individual's name must not be included as an author solely because of seniority, position, financial support, administrative authority, or honorary considerations.

Core Authorship Principle
All listed authors must have a legitimate contribution to the scholarly work and be able to explain and take responsibility for their respective contributions.
2. Authorship Criteria

Individuals listed as authors are expected to satisfy the following criteria:

  • Make a substantial intellectual contribution to the conception or design of the research, the acquisition of research materials or data, or the analysis and interpretation of the findings.
  • Participate in drafting the manuscript or critically revising it for important intellectual content.
  • Approve the final version of the manuscript submitted for publication.
  • Accept accountability for their contributions and cooperate in addressing questions concerning the accuracy or integrity of the work.
Important: Individuals who do not meet the applicable authorship criteria must not be listed as authors merely because of their institutional position, supervisory role, or involvement in routine administrative activities.
3. Corresponding Author Responsibilities

The corresponding author serves as the principal contact between the authors and the editorial office throughout submission, peer review, revision, and publication. The corresponding author is responsible for:

  • Ensuring that all authors have approved the submitted manuscript and its final version.
  • Providing accurate information about authorship, affiliations, funding, and relevant conflicts of interest.
  • Communicating editorial decisions and revision requests to all co-authors.
  • Ensuring that all required declarations and supporting documents are submitted accurately.
  • Coordinating responses to editorial queries and cooperating in the resolution of ethical concerns.
The designation of a corresponding author does not exempt other authors from responsibility for their own contributions or for matters relating to the integrity of the manuscript.
4. Author Order and Changes in Authorship

The order of authors must be agreed upon by all authors and should reflect their respective contributions to the research and manuscript. Authors are expected to resolve disagreements regarding author order before submission.

Changes After Submission
Any request to add, remove, or reorder authors after submission must include a clear explanation and written agreement from all affected authors. The editorial office may request additional documentation before considering the change.

Where a dispute cannot be resolved by the authors, IJCLS may refer the matter to the relevant institution or follow applicable COPE guidance.

5. Contributorship and Transparency

IJCLS encourages transparent reporting of individual contributions. Where appropriate, authors should clearly identify their respective roles in the research and preparation of the manuscript. Contributions may include:

  • Conceptualization and formulation of the research problem.
  • Development of the research methodology and analytical framework.
  • Collection and examination of legal materials, documents, or empirical data.
  • Analysis and interpretation of research findings.
  • Preparation of the original manuscript and substantive revisions.
  • Supervision and coordination of the research.
Contribution statements must accurately represent each individual's role and must not exaggerate or misrepresent their contributions.
6. Non-Author Contributors and Acknowledgments

Individuals who provide assistance but do not meet the criteria for authorship may be acknowledged in an appropriate section of the manuscript, subject to their consent. Such assistance may include administrative support, language editing, technical assistance, or other limited contributions.

Acknowledgment must not be used to disguise honorary authorship or imply that a person has endorsed the manuscript when they have not. Funding sources, institutional support, and other relevant assistance should be disclosed accurately where applicable.

7. Artificial Intelligence and Authorship
AI Tools Cannot Be Listed as Authors
Artificial intelligence (AI) tools cannot be listed as authors. They cannot assume responsibility for the accuracy, originality, integrity, or ethical implications of scholarly work. Human authors remain fully accountable for all content submitted to IJCLS, including content produced or assisted by AI tools.

Authors must disclose the use of AI tools when such use is relevant to the preparation, analysis, or presentation of the manuscript and in accordance with the journal's applicable disclosure requirements. Authors must verify AI-assisted content, check the accuracy of references and citations, and ensure that the manuscript does not contain fabricated sources, misleading statements, or unauthorized material.

The use of AI does not transfer authorship or responsibility from human authors to the tool. The editorial team may seek clarification about AI use when necessary to assess compliance with publication ethics.

8. Editorial Oversight and Ethical Concerns

The editorial team may investigate concerns relating to honorary authorship, ghost authorship, undisclosed contributions, disputed author order, or inaccurate contributorship statements. Authors are expected to cooperate with reasonable requests for clarification and supporting documentation.

Concerns will be handled fairly and confidentially to the extent appropriate. Where necessary, IJCLS may consult relevant institutions or apply applicable COPE guidance.

Editorial action will depend on the nature and seriousness of the concern and may include requesting corrections, suspending consideration of a manuscript, or taking other appropriate action consistent with publication ethics.

9. Ownership and Management

The Indonesian Journal of Criminal Law Studies (IJCLS) is managed by its designated publishing institution, which provides the institutional, administrative, and organizational support necessary for the journal's operation. Information about the journal's ownership, publisher, and management structure should be disclosed transparently to authors, reviewers, readers, and other stakeholders.

The publisher and journal owner must respect the independence of editorial decision-making. Decisions concerning acceptance, revision, rejection, and publication must be based on academic grounds, including relevance to the journal's scope, scholarly quality, peer-review outcomes, and compliance with publication ethics. Such decisions must not be improperly influenced by commercial interests, institutional pressure, personal relationships, or other non-academic considerations.

The Editor-in-Chief and editorial team are responsible for implementing editorial policies, overseeing peer review, and maintaining the academic and ethical standards of IJCLS. The publisher may provide administrative and technical support but must not improperly interfere with editorial judgments concerning individual manuscripts.

Any actual or potential conflict of interest involving the publisher, journal owner, editors, or other persons responsible for journal management must be disclosed and addressed appropriately. Editorial responsibilities should be assigned and exercised in a manner that safeguards fairness, transparency, accountability, and the integrity of the scholarly record.

Information concerning the journal's ownership, publishing institution, and management structure should remain accurate and accessible through the official journal website. Any material changes to this information should be updated transparently.

10. References and Ethical Guidance

This policy is informed by the following guidance:

  1. Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Discussion Document: Authorship. September 2019. https://doi.org/10.24318/cope.2019.3.3
  2. Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). COPE Position: Authorship and AI. https://doi.org/10.24318/cCVRZBms
IJCLS is committed to transparent authorship, accurate contributorship statements, responsible use of AI, and editorial independence in order to safeguard academic integrity and the reliability of the scholarly record.