Author Guidelines

RES PUBLICA: International Review of Public Law and Political Studies welcomes original scholarly manuscripts that contribute to the advancement of knowledge in public law, political studies, governance, public policy, and related fields within the journal's Focus and Scope.

Authors are required to carefully follow the guidelines below before submitting a manuscript.

1. Manuscript Originality

Submitted manuscripts must be original works and must not have been previously published or be under consideration for publication in another journal or publication.

By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm that:

  • the manuscript is original and has not been published elsewhere;

  • the manuscript is not simultaneously submitted to another journal;

  • all sources and materials used in the manuscript are properly acknowledged;

  • all authors have approved the submitted version; and

  • the submission complies with the journal's publication ethics and academic integrity policies.

2. Language

Manuscripts submitted to RES PUBLICA must be written in English using clear, academic, and grammatically appropriate language.

Authors are responsible for ensuring the linguistic quality of their manuscripts before submission.

3. Article Types

RES PUBLICA accepts scholarly contributions including:

  • Original Research Articles;

  • Conceptual and Theoretical Articles;

  • Comparative Studies;

  • Socio-Legal and Empirical Studies; and

  • Critical or Analytical Review Articles.

Manuscripts must provide a clear scholarly contribution and demonstrate relevance to public law and/or political studies.

4. Manuscript Structure

Research articles should generally contain the following components:

  1. Title

  2. Author(s) and affiliation(s)

  3. Abstract

  4. Keywords

  5. Introduction

  6. Literature Review or Theoretical Framework

  7. Research Method

  8. Results and Discussion

  9. Conclusion

  10. Acknowledgments, where applicable

  11. Declaration of Conflicting Interests, where applicable

  12. Funding Statement, where applicable

  13. Generative AI Disclosure, where applicable

  14. References

The structure may be adjusted according to the nature and methodology of the research, particularly for doctrinal, normative, conceptual, comparative, or interdisciplinary legal studies.

5. Title

The title should be concise, specific, informative, and accurately reflect the main subject of the manuscript.

Authors should avoid unnecessary abbreviations, overly general expressions, and excessive use of keywords in the title.

6. Abstract

The abstract should clearly summarize the essential elements of the manuscript.

For research articles, the abstract should generally include:

  • research background or problem;

  • research objective;

  • methodology or analytical approach;

  • principal findings or arguments; and

  • conclusion or implications.

The abstract should be written as a single coherent paragraph and should be sufficiently informative to allow readers to understand the substance and contribution of the article.

7. Keywords

Authors should provide 3–5 keywords that accurately represent the main concepts, issues, variables, legal fields, or themes discussed in the manuscript.

Keywords should avoid unnecessary repetition of words already contained in the title unless they are essential for discoverability.

8. Introduction

The introduction should establish the research context and clearly explain the problem addressed by the manuscript.

It should identify the relevant scholarly or practical problem, explain the significance of the research, demonstrate the research gap or unresolved issue, and clearly state the research objectives and/or research questions.

9. Literature Review and Theoretical Framework

The literature review should demonstrate the author's understanding of relevant and current scholarship.

Authors should critically engage with previous studies rather than merely summarize existing literature. The review should establish the theoretical, conceptual, or analytical foundation of the manuscript and clearly demonstrate how the study contributes to existing scholarship.

10. Research Method

The methodology must be clearly explained and appropriate to the research objectives and questions.

Depending on the nature of the study, the methodology may include doctrinal or normative legal research, socio-legal research, empirical research, comparative research, qualitative or quantitative approaches, historical analysis, or interdisciplinary methods.

For legal research, authors should clearly identify the legal approach, legal materials or sources, and analytical method employed.

11. Results and Discussion

The results and discussion should present the principal findings, arguments, or legal analysis of the research in a clear and systematic manner.

Authors should critically interpret their findings and relate them to relevant theories, previous studies, legal principles, public policies, political developments, or broader scholarly debates.

The discussion should demonstrate the significance and contribution of the research rather than merely describe the findings.

12. Conclusion

The conclusion should directly address the research objectives and/or research questions.

It should summarize the principal findings or arguments and may include relevant theoretical, legal, institutional, or policy implications.

The conclusion should not simply repeat the discussion and should not introduce substantial new arguments or evidence that have not been discussed in the manuscript.

13. References

RES PUBLICA places particular emphasis on the quality, relevance, and adequacy of scholarly references.

Authors must comply with the following minimum requirements:

  • The manuscript must contain at least 30 references.

  • At least 80% of the references must come from peer-reviewed scholarly journals.

  • Authors are encouraged to prioritize reputable national and international journals.

  • References should be relevant and directly support the arguments, theoretical framework, methodology, and discussion of the manuscript.

  • Authors should prioritize recent scholarly literature while retaining important seminal or foundational works where academically necessary.

  • References should be cited consistently throughout the manuscript.

  • Each reference must correspond to an in-text citation and vice versa.

  • A DOI must be provided whenever one is available.

  • Authors are strongly encouraged to use reliable reference-management software such as Mendeley or equivalent tools.

For public law manuscripts, authoritative primary sources such as constitutions, legislation, regulations, judicial decisions, official government documents, and international legal instruments may be included where relevant. Such primary legal sources are not required to have a DOI.

Meeting the minimum number of references does not guarantee acceptance. Editors and reviewers will assess the quality, relevance, currency, diversity, and appropriate use of the cited literature.

14. Tables and Figures

Tables and figures must be prepared and presented in accordance with the RES PUBLICA journal template provided for authors.

Authors are required to use the table and figure formats, styles, numbering, captions, and placement specified in the journal template.

All tables and figures must:

  • be relevant to the manuscript;

  • be clearly numbered and titled;

  • be referred to appropriately in the main text;

  • follow the formatting and presentation requirements provided in the journal template; and

  • include appropriate source information or attribution where applicable.

Authors should not create a separate table or figure format that differs substantially from the format provided in the official journal template.

Any table or figure reproduced or adapted from another source must be properly acknowledged and, where necessary, used with appropriate permission.

15. Citation and Referencing

RES PUBLICA uses the American Psychological Association (APA) 7th Edition style for in-text citations and reference lists.

Authors must consistently follow the APA 7th Edition citation and referencing style throughout the manuscript.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that:

  • all sources cited in the manuscript are included in the reference list;

  • all references listed are cited in the manuscript;

  • author names and publication years are accurate;

  • journal titles, article titles, volume and issue numbers, and page ranges are correctly presented;

  • DOI information is provided whenever available;

  • DOI links are presented in the appropriate APA 7th Edition format;

  • online sources include accurate and accessible information where applicable; and

  • citations and references are consistently formatted according to APA 7th Edition.

Authors are strongly encouraged to use reference-management software such as Mendeley, Zotero, or equivalent tools to ensure consistency and accuracy.

Examples of APA 7th Edition references include:

Journal Article:

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of the article. Title of the Journal, volume(issue), page–page. https://doi.org/xxxxx

Book:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the book. Publisher.

Chapter or Contribution in an Edited Book:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of chapter. In B. B. Editor (Ed.), Title of the book (pp. xx–xx). Publisher.

Government or Institutional Publication:

Organization Name. (Year). Title of report or document. Publisher or Organization. URL

Webpage:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of webpage. Website Name. URL

For legal materials, legislation, judicial decisions, treaties, and other primary legal sources, authors should provide sufficient information to enable readers to identify and verify the source while maintaining consistency with the journal's APA 7th Edition referencing requirements and applicable legal citation conventions.

16. Research Ethics

Authors conducting research involving human participants, personal data, interviews, surveys, or other potentially sensitive information must comply with applicable research ethics requirements.

Where applicable, manuscripts should include information concerning ethical approval, informed consent, data protection, or other relevant ethical considerations.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that their research complies with the ethical and legal requirements applicable to their research context.

17. Mandatory Author Declarations

To ensure transparency, accountability, and research integrity, every manuscript submitted to RES PUBLICA must include the following three statements before the References section:

  1. Conflict of Interest

  2. CRediT Author Statement (CRediT Taxonomy)

  3. Generative AI Disclosure

These statements are mandatory for all submissions. Where a particular declaration does not apply, authors must explicitly state this rather than omit the section.

17.1 Conflict of Interest

Authors must disclose any financial, institutional, personal, professional, or other relationships that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the research, analysis, interpretation, or publication of the manuscript.

If no conflict of interest exists, authors should include the following statement:

Conflict of Interest: The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest related to the research, authorship, or publication of this article.

If a conflict exists, authors must provide a clear description of the nature of the conflict.

17.2 CRediT Author Statement

RES PUBLICA requires authors to provide a CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy) statement describing the individual contributions of each author to the manuscript.

Authors should identify the contributions of each author using the applicable CRediT roles, including:

  • Conceptualization

  • Methodology

  • Software

  • Validation

  • Formal Analysis

  • Investigation

  • Resources

  • Data Curation

  • Writing – Original Draft

  • Writing – Review & Editing

  • Visualization

  • Supervision

  • Project Administration

  • Funding Acquisition

Authors should only assign roles that accurately reflect their actual contributions.

Example:

CRediT Author Statement:
Author 1: Conceptualization, Methodology, Formal Analysis, Writing – Original Draft.
Author 2: Investigation, Data Curation, Writing – Review & Editing.
Author 3: Supervision, Project Administration, Validation.

For single-authored manuscripts, the author should provide an appropriate statement describing their contribution, for example:

CRediT Author Statement: The author was responsible for Conceptualization, Methodology, Investigation, Formal Analysis, Writing – Original Draft, Writing – Review & Editing, and Project Administration.

17.3 Generative AI Disclosure

Authors must disclose any substantive use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools in the preparation of the manuscript in accordance with the journal's Generative AI Policy.

Where applicable, the disclosure should identify the AI tool used and explain the purpose and extent of its use.

Example:

Generative AI Disclosure: During the preparation of this manuscript, the authors used QuillBot, ChatGPT, and Jenni AI for language editing and improving readability. The authors reviewed and edited the output and take full responsibility for the content of the published article.

If no generative AI tools were used in the preparation of the manuscript, authors should state:

Generative AI Disclosure: The authors declare that no generative AI tools were used in the preparation of this manuscript.

Generative AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors. Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and ethical aspects of the manuscript, including all AI-assisted content.

18. Funding Statement

Authors should disclose all sources of financial or institutional support for the research.

If the research received no specific funding, authors may state that the research received no external funding.

19. Plagiarism and Similarity

All submitted manuscripts must be original and free from plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, duplicate publication, and other forms of academic misconduct.

Manuscripts may be subjected to a similarity check before or during the editorial and peer-review process.

Authors are responsible for properly acknowledging all sources and obtaining permission where required for copyrighted materials.

20. Submission Requirements

Before submitting a manuscript, authors should ensure that:

  • the manuscript follows the journal's formatting requirements;

  • the manuscript fits the journal's Focus and Scope;

  • the manuscript is written in English;

  • the manuscript contains at least 30 references;

  • at least 80% of references are from peer-reviewed scholarly journals;

  • DOI information is provided where available;

  • all references cited in the manuscript appear in the reference list;

  • all authors' information is complete and accurate;

  • tables and figures are properly labeled;

  • conflicts of interest and funding information are disclosed where applicable; and

  • any substantive use of generative AI has been disclosed.

21. Submission and Editorial Process

Manuscripts must be submitted electronically through the RES PUBLICA online journal submission system.

After submission, manuscripts undergo an initial editorial screening. Manuscripts that meet the journal's requirements may proceed to the double-blind peer-review process.

Authors are expected to respond carefully and professionally to editorial and reviewer comments during the revision process.

22. Author Responsibility

Authors are fully responsible for the content of their manuscripts, including the accuracy of data, legal sources, interpretations, citations, references, and conclusions.

Publication in RES PUBLICA does not imply that the editorial team or publisher endorses every opinion or argument expressed in a published article.

By submitting a manuscript, authors acknowledge and agree to comply with the journal's Peer Review Process, Publication Ethics, Generative AI Policy, Copyright and Licensing Policy, and other applicable journal policies.