NFSU Law Review · SLFJPS · NFSU
NFSU Law Review is the official peer-reviewed law journal of the School of Law, Forensic Justice and Policy Studies (SLFJPS), National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU). It serves as a premier platform for rigorous academic discourse and scholarly engagement on issues concerning law, forensic science, criminal justice, constitutional affairs, and public policy. The journal publishes articles, case commentaries, research notes, and legislative analyses contributed by students, academics, legal practitioners, and policy researchers.
NFSU Law Review is committed to maintaining the highest standards of academic integrity, confidentiality, transparency, and fairness across all stages of its submission, peer review, and publication processes. This policy document governs the rights and responsibilities of all persons who interact with the journal in any capacity.
This policy establishes the comprehensive framework governing the collection and use of personal information, submission of manuscripts, editorial review procedures, publication rights, intellectual property obligations, and ethical standards applicable to all contributors, peer reviewers, competition participants, and editorial board members associated with NFSU Law Review.
This policy applies to all forms of content submitted to or published by NFSU Law Review, including but not limited to research articles, essays, case notes, legislative commentaries, book reviews, and competition entries. All persons engaging with NFSU Law Review are deemed to have read, understood, and agreed to the terms set out herein.
NFSU Law Review may collect limited personal information from contributors, peer reviewers, competition participants, and other stakeholders. The categories of information collected may include full names, institutional affiliations, academic designations, email addresses, contact numbers (where voluntarily provided), and submitted manuscripts or competition entries.
The information collected is used solely for the following purposes:
Personal information collected by NFSU Law Review will not be sold, rented, licensed, or otherwise distributed to any third party without the express prior consent of the individual concerned, except where such disclosure is required for legitimate administrative, institutional, or legal purposes, or as directed by the competent authorities of NFSU.
All manuscripts and competition entries received by NFSU Law Review are treated as strictly confidential documents. Access to submitted materials is restricted exclusively to authorised members of the editorial board who are directly involved in the evaluation, editorial processing, or publication of the relevant submission.
No submitted manuscript or entry shall be shared, circulated, reproduced, or discussed outside the editorial process without the written consent of the author(s). This obligation of confidentiality extends beyond the period of active review and continues to apply even in cases where a submission is ultimately rejected or withdrawn.
Members of the editorial board are required to treat all unpublished submissions as proprietary works of their respective authors and must not use, cite, or reference the contents of any submission in their own academic or professional work without prior written authorisation.
NFSU Law Review follows a rigorous double-blind peer review process designed to ensure impartial, merit-based evaluation of all submissions. The double-blind process operates as follows:
All academic competitions organised under the auspices of NFSU Law Review, including but not limited to essay competitions, moot court writing rounds, and legal drafting contests, shall maintain strict anonymity throughout the evaluation process to uphold principles of fairness and merit-based assessment.
Participants shall be assigned unique identification codes or registration numbers at the time of submission, which shall serve as the sole identifier during evaluation. Evaluators and judges shall assess entries solely on the basis of academic merit, quality of legal reasoning, originality of argument, and adherence to prescribed guidelines. No evaluator shall be assigned to assess entries submitted by persons with whom they share a personal, academic, or institutional relationship.
Following the conclusion of the evaluation process and the finalisation of results by the editorial board or designated judging panel, the names of winning and shortlisted participants, along with their institutional affiliations, may be publicly announced on the official platforms of NFSU Law Review, including the journal website, social media handles, and institutional communications.
Such disclosure is made solely for the purpose of recognising academic achievement and facilitating prize distribution, certification, and formal acknowledgement. No additional personal information beyond the participant's name and institutional affiliation shall be disclosed without consent.
All manuscripts and entries submitted to NFSU Law Review must satisfy the following conditions at the time of submission:
By submitting a manuscript, the author(s) warrant that all of the above conditions are satisfied and accept full responsibility for the accuracy and originality of the submitted work.
NFSU Law Review maintains an absolute zero-tolerance policy with respect to all forms of plagiarism and academic misconduct. All submissions are subject to screening through recognised plagiarism detection software prior to or during the review process. The following conduct constitutes a violation of this policy:
Upon detection of any such misconduct, NFSU Law Review reserves the right to reject the submission at any stage of the process, withdraw a published article, issue a formal notice of retraction, report the matter to the author's institution, and impose such other corrective or remedial measures as the editorial board deems appropriate. The editorial board's decision in such matters shall be final.
Upon acceptance of a manuscript for publication, authors grant NFSU Law Review the exclusive right of first publication of the work in its accepted form. This right includes the right to publish the work in print and digital editions of the journal, to host and archive the work on the journal's official website and affiliated digital repositories, and to permit indexing of the work through relevant academic databases and citation indices.
Authors retain the moral authorship and intellectual ownership of their work at all times. Following publication, authors may reproduce, distribute, or use their published work for non-commercial academic purposes, including posting to institutional repositories or personal academic profiles, provided that proper attribution to NFSU Law Review and the original publication details are clearly indicated.
Any commercial reproduction, adaptation, or republication of a work published in NFSU Law Review requires the prior written consent of both the journal and the author(s).
The editorial board of NFSU Law Review retains full and final authority over all editorial decisions, including the acceptance, conditional acceptance, rejection, or request for revision of any submission. Editorial decisions are made on the basis of the following criteria:
The editorial board may, at its discretion, request authors to carry out substantive revisions, structural modifications, or stylistic improvements as a condition of acceptance. The decision to accept or reject a revised submission rests solely with the editorial board, and such decisions are not subject to appeal except in cases involving an alleged breach of this policy.
All members of the editorial board and all peer reviewers are required to disclose any actual, perceived, or potential conflict of interest that may affect their ability to evaluate a submission impartially. Conflicts of interest include, but are not limited to, personal or professional relationships with the author(s), academic rivalry or collaboration, shared institutional affiliation, co-authorship within the preceding five years, financial interests in the subject matter, or any other circumstance that may compromise objectivity.
Upon disclosure of a conflict of interest, the concerned editorial member or reviewer shall recuse themselves from all aspects of the evaluation process relating to the affected submission. The Editor-in-Chief shall ensure that alternative reviewers or editors are appointed in such cases. Failure to disclose a known conflict of interest is itself a breach of this policy and may result in disciplinary action.
Authors and contributors are required to uphold the highest standards of academic ethics and professional responsibility. In particular, all contributors must ensure that:
NFSU Law Review is an official academic publication operating under the School of Law, Forensic Justice and Policy Studies (SLFJPS), National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU). The journal functions under the administrative oversight and institutional framework of SLFJPS and NFSU.
The views, opinions, arguments, and conclusions expressed in any article, essay, commentary, or other content published in NFSU Law Review belong solely to the respective author(s) and do not represent, reflect, or constitute the official position, policy, or views of NFSU Law Review, SLFJPS, NFSU, or any of their respective officers, faculty members, or affiliates. Publication of a work in NFSU Law Review does not constitute endorsement of its contents by the journal or the university.
NFSU Law Review implements reasonable and appropriate technical and organisational safeguards to ensure the secure storage and processing of all manuscripts, personal information, and editorial records entrusted to it. Access to such information is strictly limited to authorised members of the editorial board on a need-to-know basis.
Personal data collected during the submission or competition process will be retained only for as long as is necessary for the relevant editorial, institutional, or archival purpose. Upon the conclusion of the review process, personal information of unsuccessful contributors will be securely deleted or anonymised, unless retention is required for institutional reporting or dispute resolution purposes. Contributors may request information about the data held by the journal or seek correction of inaccurate information by contacting the editorial board through the journal's official communication channels.
NFSU Law Review reserves the right to review, revise, and amend this policy at any time to reflect changes in editorial practices, institutional directives, applicable laws, or other relevant considerations. Any material amendments to this policy will be notified to contributors and stakeholders through the journal's official website and communication channels. Continued engagement with NFSU Law Review following the publication of any amended policy shall constitute acceptance of the revised terms.
For any queries, clarifications, or concerns relating to this policy, contributors and participants are encouraged to contact the editorial board of NFSU Law Review through the official institutional email address.