GUIDELINES FOR AUTHORS

 

The Lawyer Quarterly (TLQ) is a peer-reviewed journal. TLQ offers publishing under an open access license. All users have free access to the Journal’s content without any restrictions, and there are no article processing charges or other fees related to publishing in the TLQ.  

TLQ welcomes submissions of the following types of manuscripts: original articles, short reports, and commentaries. In addition, TLQ also commissions book reviews, reports, and ‘discussion’ papers.

All manuscripts are peer-reviewed either by two members of the Editorial Board of TLQ or, in case of extreme necessity, by one member of the Editorial Board of TLQ and by one independent expert with relevant expertise, or by two independent experts. For book reviews and reports, the standards of review are adapted as appropriate. They are accepted for publishing in TLQ based on the decision of the Head of the Editorial Board.

Please note that our peer-review process takes several criteria into account. Excellence is a necessary condition for publication, but it is not always a sufficient condition. The need for a balance of topics, the Journal’s particular areas of interest, which may change over time, the fact that something similar has already been published or overlaps with another submission in the pipeline, etc., may also influence the final decision. Therefore, a rejection does not necessarily reflect upon the quality of a piece.

Please read the following instructions before submitting your paper to TLQ journal.

 

MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:

 

TLQ peer-review process is double-anonymized. Therefore, before you submit, make sure that you have two separate files containing:

1. A manuscript with no information to identify the author/s. The Editorial Board of TLQ bears no responsibility for any consequences of an insufficient level of anonymity of the text. An insufficient level of anonymity may result in a delay in the process.
2. A title page, which indicates the author’s name with all academic titles, an ORCID identifier, workplace, article title, and email address.

Submissions should be accompanied by an assurance that the manuscript has not been published, submitted, or accepted elsewhere. Submissions, in electronic form only, are to be sent to the Editorial Board of TLQ to the e-mail address tlq@ilaw.cas.cz. All other correspondence is to be addressed to the Editorial Board of TLQ using the same e-mail address tlq@ilaw.cas.cz as well.

A manuscript that does not meet the formal requirements following these Guidelines cannot be accepted for the review proceeding.

 

Length

The number of pages of an article (paper) should not exceed 9,000 words, including footnotes (approximately 20 pages). The head of the Editorial Board may also exceptionally accept longer articles if they are considered highly relevant.

The number of pages of book reviews, reports, and commentaries should not, in general, exceed 2,200 words (approximately 5 pages).

In addition, TLQ also accepts ‘discussion’ papers of a maximum 4,500 words (approximately 10 pages), and short reports of a maximum 2,200 words (approximately 5 pages). Conference and workshop reports are to be sent to the Editorial Board of TLQ within one month after the event took place.

 

Formal requirements

The manuscript shall meet the following formal requirements:

The article, including an abstract (c. 10 sentences) and keywords (5-7), shall be written in the English language using one of the generally available text editors (e.g., MS Word), font size shall be 12, type of font Times New Roman, line spacing 1.5, and borders at each side 2.5 cm. The manuscript must be paginated and divided into paragraphs and chapters, possibly with secondary titles. Notes in the manuscript are to be numbered in one series for the entire document and always included at the bottom of the corresponding page (footnotes). All citations are to comply with the Czech citation norm (CSN ISO 690 and CSN ISO 690-2 standard). For more details on bibliographic references and other requirements, see citation samples below.

Authors bear full responsibility for the language, contents, and formal level of the manuscript. The Editorial Board of TLQ will only make basic necessary language changes to the texts received.

A manuscript that does not meet the formal requirements of these Instructions may not be accepted for the review proceeding.

 

CORRECT CITATION FORMAT  
 

BOOKS

SIEMS, Mathias. Comparative Law. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014, pp. 119-121. 

CHALMERS, D., TOMKINS, A. European Union Public Law. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007, p. 57.

 

Notes:
- Using another author name variant is also permissible: SIEMS, M. The same holds for citing other sources.

- The edition is generally specified only if it is the 2nd or later edition, and it is always in the same language as the rest of the document.

- If some information cannot be found, omit it. When taking information from another source (e.g., a database in a library), use square brackets:

SOMMER, O. Prameny soukromého práva římského [Sources of Roman Private Law]. 2^nd revised edition [Prague]: Melantrich, [1946], p. 26. 

- If the book is written in a language other than English and it can be assumed that the readers inability to understand the language would be a hindrance, it is strongly recommended that the title of the book be added in square brackets. The same rule applies to articles and other sources that are cited, including contributions on the internet.

KNAPP, Viktor. Teorie práva [Theory of Law]. Prague: C. H. Beck, 1995, pp. 100-105.

 

Short-form citation (when citing the work repeatedly)

SIEMS, Mathias. Comparative Law, pp. 249-250.

KNAPP, V. Teorie práva [Theory of Law], pp. 104. 

CHAPTERS FROM BOOKS  

MORLEY, Bruce. The economic consequences of Brexit: a brief overview of the literature. In: E. Conde - Zhaklin V. Yaneva - Marzia Scopelliti  (eds.).  The Routledge Handbook of European Security Law and Policy. London: Routledge, 2021, pp. 131-134.

ARTICLES IN JOURNALS  

ARNER, Douglas W., BUCKLEY, Ross P., WEBER Rolf H., ZETZSCHE, Dirk. The evolution and future of data-driven finance in the EU. Common Market Law Review. 2020, Vol. 57, Issue 2, p. 332.

GARDBAUM, S. The New Commonwealth Model of Constitutionalism. The American Journal of Comparative Law. 2001, Vol. 49, Issue 4, p. 405.

 

ARTICLES IN ONLINE JOURNALS 

EDWARD, Barry C. Why Appeals Courts Rarely Reverse Lower Courts: An Experimental Study to Explore Affirmation Bias. Emory Law Journal Online. 2019, Vol. 68, p. 1036 [2024-08-29]. Available at: <https://scholarlycommons.law.emory.edu/elj-online/7/>.

CONTRIBUTIONS ON THE INTERNET 

NICOLA, Fernanda G., CAMERON, Jasmine D. First Time as Tragedy, Second Time as Farce. The Chilling Effects of the Hungarian Law Protecting National Sovereignty. In: Verfassungsblog. On Matters Constitutional [online]. 5.9.2024 [2024-10-9]. Available at: <https://verfassungsblog.de/second-time-as-farce/>.

LEMMENS, Koen. Judges on Social Media: Freedom of Expression versus Duty of Judicial Restraint - Lessons from Danilet v. Romania. In: Strasbourg Observers [online]. 7.6.2024 [2024-10-9]. Available at: < https://strasbourgobservers.com/2024/06/07/judges-on-social-media-freedom-of-expression-versus-duty-of-judicial-restraint-lessons-from-danilet-v-romania/>.

Note:

If the contribution is written in a language other than English and it can be assumed that the readers inability to understand the language would be a hindrance, it is strongly recommended that the title of the contribution and the name of the website be added in square brackets. 

 

Submission Preparation Checklist

 

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.

• The submitted manuscript is the author’s original work, which they can support with evidence upon request.
• The author only submits manuscripts not published previously elsewhere.
• The author is the sole owner of copyright for the submitted manuscript; in case there are co-authors all authors must be listed and agree with the publication of the manuscript.
• The author clearly, accurately, and unequivocally lists all sources used when writing the manuscript.
• The author informs the editor about any conflicts of interest related to the submitted manuscript.
• The author grants the publisher free of charge the right to publish the manuscript in printed or electronic form, and include the article in databases, in which The Lawyer Quarterly is included.