About the Journal

Bahir Dar University Journal of Law (BDU Journal of Law) is a peer-reviewed legal periodical publishes bi-annually in June and December every year since 2010. The Journal is  Nationally Accredited by the Ministry of Education. Our publications so far are availlable on AJOL and ejol too.  The Journal aims to create a forum for the scholarly analysis of Ethiopian law and to promote research in legal science in general. Accordingly, legal professionals (legal scholars, legal practitioners, judges and prosecutors) and others who would like to contribute their own share to the betterment of the Ethiopian legal system in particular and the legal jurisprudence in general are all cordially invited. 

 The manuscript submissions may be in the form of scholarly articles, notes, reflections, case comments and book reviews. In accordance with the Editorial Policy, any manuscript which meets the preliminary assessment criteria will go through double blind review process- shall be referred to anonymous internal and external reviewers for detailed and critical review. Those which succeed attaining the highest assessment marks shall be published. Authors may send us their manuscripts any time at their convenience via http://journals.bdu.edu.et/index.php/bdujl.

 For further information on submission, see the authors’ guideline, available@https://bdu.edu.et/sites/default/files/journal/Author%27s%20Guideline_0.pdf. Further enquiries could be addressed to the Editor- in-Chief of Bahir Dar University Journal of Law via  bdujol@yahoo.com.

 

                         

The Revised Editorial Policy of Bahir Dar University Journal of Law, November 2020-Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement requirements

 Preamble

Whereas, one of the principal missions of the Bahir Dar University Law School is to carry out research and publication activities;

Realizing that the publication of a law journal contributes to the teaching-learning process by availing students and the staff with new materials and research outputs, serves as a medium for research output dissemination, and contributes to the achievement of staff development plan by providing the forum to publish;

Realizing the development of new rules affecting the publication and reputability of the journal at national and University level;

Believing that revising the existing Editorial Policy ensures the continuity and quality of the journal;

Now, therefore, the Academic Council of the Law School hereby revised the Editorial Policy of Bahir Dar University Journal of Law (hereinafter referred to as the Journal).

 

SECTION ONE

General Provisions

  1. Short title

This Editorial Policy may be cited as the “Revised Editorial Policy of Bahir Dar University Journal of Law, November 2020”

  1. Definition

In this Editorial Policy, unless the context requires otherwise:

  1. “Manuscript” refers to submissions that the Journal shall feature. i.e., case comments, feature articles, reflections/notes, book reviews, review articles, best student essays and letters.
  2. “Feature Article” refers to scholarly writings on any law or law related topic that meets the rigors of academic writing. The Journal considers a manuscript as a feature/full-fledged article if it is an original scholarly piece based on extensive review and analysis of primary data and/or the latest literature and up-to-date legal developments with balanced presentation of arguments pertaining to the issue under discussion.
  3. “Case Comment” refers to contributions in which authors critically reflect upon cases decided by the highest courts at the federal and regional states, arbitration tribunals, the House of Federation, administrative tribunals, regional or international judicial or quasi-judicial organs and standout for any reason.
  4. “Book Review” means a contribution in which a contemporary[1] and thought-provoking book on Ethiopian law and justice system or a book with special significance in the field of international law is reviewed.
  5. “Reflection/Note” refers to contributions in which authors canvas their insightful personal thoughts on legal and justice related issues of common concern to the national or international legal community. Specifically, the Journal considers a manuscript as Reflection /Note if it is a concise yet original contribution, with minimal literature review, in which authors review, elaborate, analyze or comment on significant legal topics or the latest developments in the law or canvas their insightful personal thoughts on legal and justice related issues of significance to the legal system.
  6. “Review Article” refers to an article that generally summarizes the current state of understanding on a given topic. It surveys scholarly researches already conducted in an area, and it should give an overview of current thinking on the theme. Unlike an original research article, it will not present new research findings but, by analyzing a large body of data from existing studies, some systematic reviews may lead to new conclusions. Review articles could inform readers about the main people working in a field, recent major developments, significant gaps in the research, current debates, and the idea of where research might go next.
  7. “Letter /Letter to the Editor/” refers to written submissions to the Editor-in-Chief making comments on an article published in previously published issues of the same journal. The letter to the editor must have a purpose, and it should convey its message in a short and definitive fashion. The comments should be objective and constructive, and the authors of the article may be invited to respond to the letters (author’s response to the letter).
  1. Objectives of the Journal

The Major Objectives of the Journal are:

  1. To encourage, stimulate and promote research among staff members and beyond;
  2. To work for the advancement of legal scholarship by promoting research and critical inquiry;
  3. To nurture the "academic culture" among professional staff at the school level and beyond;
  4. To disseminate research results to the legal community and other end users.

SECTION 2

Organization and Responsibilities of the Management Body of the Journal

  1. The Management body of the Journal

The Journal shall have the following management bodies:

  1. Advisory Board, and
  2. Editorial Board
  1. The Advisory Board -1. Composition

The Advisory Board shall be composed of:

  1. The Director of the Law School, as chairperson,
  2. President of the Amhara Regional State Supreme Court or his representative,
  3. Three distinguished legal professionals living in Ethiopia or abroad to be nominated by the Editorial Board and appointed by the Academic Council,
  4. Research and Community Service vice Dean of the school.
  5. The Editor-in-Chief, who shall serve as secretary of the Board
  6. The Advisory Board-2. Responsibilities

The Advisory Board:

  1. shall be responsible for monitoring quality of the Journal;
  2. Shall assess whether the Journal meets its objectives and generally accepted standards;
  3. Shall give feedback to the Editorial Board on ways of improving the standard of the Journal;
  4. Shall popularize the Journal in their respective institutions;
  5. Shall meet once in two years, provided there maybe extraordinary meetings as deemed appropriate.
  6. The Editorial Board-1. Composition

The Editorial board shall be composed of six members:

  1. The Editor-in-Chief, and
  2. Five Associate Editors: four among the staff of the Law School one of whom shall be designated as managing editor; and one other member who shall serve as a professional English language editor.
  3. The Editorial Board-2. Appointment and Term of Service of Members
  4. The Director shall invite or nominate potential Editor-in-chiefs and shall present for appointment by the Academic Council.
  5. The Academic Council shall appoint one of the three top-scoring applicants as Editor-in-Chief.
  6. The Editor-in-Chief shall invite or nominate potential Associate Editors among the staff of the Law School who shall be appointed by the Academic Council. The Academic Council shall assign a managing editor from Associate Editors.
  7. Members of the Editorial Board shall be from different specializations.
  8. The recruitment for Editorial Board members shall consider academic rank and publications in peer-reviewed reputable journals.
  9. The Editor-in-Chief, in consultation with the dean of the School, shall be responsible for the selection and assignment of the English language editor. The English language editor shall be a professional, preferably with background or knowledge of the law.
  10. The Editorial Board members shall serve for a renewable term of three years. They may resign or be removed for failure to duly discharge duties.
  11. The Editorial baord-3. Responsibilities and Remuneration
  12. The Editorial Board members – jointly as well as individually:
    1. Shall be responsible for the editorial work and ensure the originality and quality of all contributions that appear in the Journal.
    2. Shall solicit by all appropriate means high-quality submissions.
  • Reviews and/or edits all received manuscripts and select manuscripts for publication in the Journal.
  1. Shall work to enhance the Journal’s reputability among the academic community and the community of lawyers.
  2. Decides on whether a manuscript should be rejected or reviewed as an original article or reflection/note.
  3. Shall nominate /secure potential reviewers in their respective discipline
  • May propose new members of the Advisory Board whenever needed.
  • Works with the Advisory Board of the Journal to craft and implement improved editorial policies that aims to raise the standard of the Journal.
  1. Shall work to improve the quality and regularity of the journal.
  2. Designs ways of improving the dissemination or circulation of the journal;
  3. Searches financial support for the journal.
  1. Members of the Editorial Board shall be remunerated as per the directive of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education;
  2. The Editor-in-Chief- 1. Responsibilities

The Editor-in- Chief:

  1. Shall take the overall editing-responsibilities of the Journal and is responsible for all the content approved for publishing;
  2. Set yearly objectives for peer reviews and publication times, evaluate performance and take actions to improve upon those objectives which are not achieved within the given time frame;
  3. Shall ensure the quality of the Journal by checking the content (originality, merit and relevance), language (grammar and content flow), and aesthetics (organization, clarity, flow of ideas and writing style) of the submissions that appear in the Journal;
  4. Can change, modify, paraphrase or condense the content of submissions in order to enhance its quality;
  5. Shall, in consultation with the Editorial board, approve or reject the manuscript based on the evaluation criteria;
  6. Shall oversee and guide the manuscript review and selection process;
  7. Shall ensure that feedback provided to contributors is constructive, fair, and timely;
  8. Shall provide, in consultation with the Editorial board, the Journal’s response to appeals, complaints, suggestions from readers, and ethical problems regarding published work including possible duplicate publications and fraudulent work;
  9. Shall represent the Journal and communicate on behalf of it;
  10. Shall anonymously forward contributions to be reviewed by members of the Editorial board, internal and external reviewers;
  11. Shall coordinate the activities of the Editorial Board;
  12. Shall chair the meeting of the Editorial board;
  13. Shall oversee the Journal’s distribution to concerned bodies and subscribers;
  14. Shall follow up and supervise the activities of the Associate Editors;
  15. Shall perform such other functions as are incidental and essential to the attainment of the objectives of the Journal;
  16. Calls and chairs Editorial Board meetings’, Receives and registers all manuscripts;
  17. Reviews the manuscript’s conformity and its scope, then decide to reject or send to an associate editor for preliminary review process;
  18. Responsible for communications with the corresponding author;
  19. Reports the Journal’s publication activities to the Editorial Board, Research and Community Services V/Dean, and to the Director of the School.
  20. The Managing Editor – 1. Responsibilities

The Managing Editor:

  1. Shall discharge responsibilities as member of the Editorial Boards;
  2. Shall perform or cause to be performed the typesetting and layout work of each issue of the Journal;
  3. Keep contact with the printing houses and submit the final documents to them;
  4. Process the activities needed for printing issues of the Journal;
  5. Ensure the publication of the Journal and supervise the quality of the printed material;
  6. Receive the published issue of the Journal from printing house;
  7. Plan future issues of the Journal in line with its publication timeline.
  8. Organize the subscription process and the distribution of the Journal in co-ordination with the Public Relation Office of Bahir Dar University;
  9. Distribute the Journal to subscribers;
  10. Ensure the availability of the journal on online data bases such as Ethiopian Journals Online (EJOL), and African Journals Online (AJOL).
  11. Carry out the functions of the Editor-in-Chief in his/her absence; and
  12. Perform such other functions as may be assigned to him by the Editor-in-Chief.
  13. The Associate Editors – 1. Responsibilities
    1. The Associate Editors shall discharge responsibilities assigned to the Editorial Boards as per article 9 and other provisions of this Editorial Policy.
    2. They shall cooperate and discharge other responsibilities as may be assigned by the Editor-in-Chief.

SECTION 3

Publication Schedule and Content of the Journal

  1. Schedule of Publication

The Journal is a bi-annual publication that will appear in June and December of every year.

  1. Language of Publication
  2. Contributions in the Journal can appear in Amharic or English language.
  3. Contributions shall be published in the original language of their authors.
  4. Exclusivity of Contributions

All contributions for publication in the Journal shall be unpublished original works of the author.

  1. Priority in Publication
    1. The Journal adheres to the principle of “first come first served” in undertaking screening of a submission or referring it to reviewers or publishing same.
    2. Notwithstanding sub-article 1, all submission for a single issue shall be treated as if they are submitted at the same time. The contributions that shall appear in a single issue of the Journal shall be selected by the Editorial board by taking into account the points earned by each contribution.
    3. However, the editorial board may opt to deviate for the purpose of publishing a mixture of content in each issue, and to prioritize manuscripts that contribute to Ethiopian legal science, justice system and jurisprudence.
  2. Content of the Journal
    1. The Journal shall feature scholarly works on Ethiopian law and justice system as well those that contribute to the development of the legal jurisprudence impacting regional and global perspectives. It shall feature contributions submitted in the form of case comments, feature articles, reflections/notes, book reviews, review articles, case reports, best student essays and letters.
    2. The minimum number of manuscript per issue for a journal publication is four feature articles and one or two of the other manuscripts (reflections, case comments, book review, letters, and case report).
  3. Size of Contributions

The size of contributions shall be as follows, including footnotes:

  1. Feature Articles: 7,000 – 12,000 words
  2. Review Articles: 7,000 – 12,000 words
  3. Case Comments: 2,000–6,000 words
  4. Book Review: 2,000 – 4,000 words
  5. Reflections/Notes: 2,500 – 6,000 words
  6. Best Student-Essay: 3,000 – 6,000 words
  7. Letters: 1,000 – 2,000 words
  8. 19. Content and Presentation Style of manuscripts
    1. Feature articles, review articles, notes/reflections, and best student-essays should have the following structure:
      1. An abstract of no more than 250 words (providing a concise statement of the purpose of the article, methodology and precise indication of its findings );
      2. Key words, 3 – 8 key words (indicating the content of the manuscript but without merely replicating its title or textual sub-headings);
      3. Introduction (briefly describing the subject matter of the manuscript, methodology and its objectives);
      4. Body (containing discussions, analyses, arguments, etc. and may be divided into sections, and subsections depending on the author’s approach to the subject matter); and 
      5. Conclusion (reflecting the author’s synoptic opinion on the subject matter, and may include suggestions, proposals, affirmation, recommendations, etc.).
      6. Headings in the various sections of the manuscript shall be aligned to the left margin of the page and should be arranged in a logically organized headings and sub-headings as follows:

Abstract

Introduction

  1. First Heading

1.1. Second Heading

1.1.1. Third Heading

  1. Fourth heading
  2. First Heading

2.1. Second Heading

2.1.1. Third Heading

  1. Fourth heading

Conclusion

  1. Case comments: Case comments to be submitted to the Journal should be structured as follows:
    1. Main subject heading;
    2. Case name and citation;
    3. Text: (1) the facts, (2) the decision/HELD paragraph, and (3) the commentary on the case; and Summary remark.
  1. Book Reviews: book reviews should have the following elements:
    1. A Header, that should include: (1) author(s)/editor(s) name, (2) title of book, (3) year of publication, (4) edition (if second or subsequent), (5) publisher and place of publication, (6) number of pages, (7) format (hardback, if available in e-copy), (8) ISBN, and (9) price(if available);
    2. A summary of the intended audience and purpose of the book and how it contributes to the field of scholarship;
    3. A description of the way the author approaches his or her topic, the rigor of the research and scholarship, the logic of the argument, and the readability of the prose;
    4. A comparison with earlier or similar books (if any) in the field to place the book in the existing literature;
    5. An evaluation of the book's merits, usefulness, and special contributions, along with constructive comments on its limitations; and indication of who would find the book useful and its implication for research, policy, practice, or theory.
  1. Letters: The letter to the editor should convey its message in a short and definitive fashion. The comments should be objective and constructive.
  2. Author’s affiliation: The author’s affiliation shall be indicated in a footnote marked by an asterisk and not by an Arabic number. Authors shall refer to themselves, if at all, in the third person pronoun throughout the text.
  3. 20. Requirements as to Reference/ Citation Rule
    1. Bahir Dar University Journal of Law follows footnote citation style.
    2. The style of referencing for any contribution to Bahir Dar University Journal of Law shall be based on citation rule annexed at the end of this policy, which is the customized version of the Blue Book Citation Rules (Annex 1).
    3. Where the customized version falls short of completeness for a specific citation, Authors should resort to the latest editions of the Blue Book Citation Rules.

SECTION 4

Submission and Review Procedure

  1. Submission
    1. All contributions to the Journal should be submitted in the time indicated in the call for contribution. These shall not preclude the acceptance of contributions at any time if offer is made by authors interested in the Journal.
    2. Submissions should, in a separate page (cover letter), include name of the author(s), educational qualification, institutional affiliation, current occupation, contact address (e-mail and phone number), an abstract; and a declaration that the manuscript contributor is aware of the copyright policy of the Journal and he renounces the copyright in favor of Bahir Dar University.
    3. The contribution should be free from any self-identifying information about the author. Identifying information should be indicated only in the cover letter.
    4. All English version contributions should be submitted in Microsoft Word document format, written in 12 point font, 1.5 spacing, left justified, Times New Roman, with a margin of 1 inch all sides; and Footnotes in 10 point font, single space, Times New Roman.
    5. All Amharic version contributions should be submitted in Microsoft Word document format, written in 12 point font, 1.5 spacing, justified, Power Geez Unicode 1, with a margin on 1 inch all sides; and footnotes in 10 fonts, single space.
    6. Manuscripts submitted in Amharic should be accompanied with an English version of the full title of the manuscript, name and affiliation of author(s), the abstract, and the key words.
    7. A manuscript shall be accompanied by a declaration statement that it has not been submitted for publication elsewhere.
    8. Unless otherwise indicated in the call for contributions, contributions shall be submitted in soft copy via (Bahir Dar University Journal of Law (bdu.edu.et), and as a last resort in case the web fails, via the e-mail address: bdujol@yahoo.com.
  2. Manuscript Review Procedure-1. Principle
    1. The journal adheres to double-blind review process: ; the reviewers shall not be allowed to know the identity of the author of contributions. Nor should authors be allowed to know the identity of the reviewer of their contributions.
  3. Manuscript Review Procedure-2. Preliminary review:
    1. The Editor-in-Chief shall acknowledge the receipt of a manuscript within one week.
    2. There shall be initial screening of manuscripts for substantive and technical suitability for publication:
      1. Manuscripts shall first be reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief for consistency with the editorial policy of the Journal.
      2. After removing all information identifying the author from the script and assigning a code, the Editor-in-chief shall forward the manuscript to two of the associate editors conversant with the subject, for a preliminary review report.
      3. The associate editors, in consultation with the Editor-in-chief, shall have three options of decisions: ‘accept manuscripts for further review’, ‘return it to author for revision’, or ‘reject it’;
      4. The Editorial Board also decides on whether a manuscript is to be accepted as full length article or note/reflection.
  4. Manuscript Review Procedure-3. Final review of manuscripts
    1. A manuscript (feature articles, notes/reflections, and review article) shall be reviewed by one internal reviewer and one external reviewer who are well-conversant with the subject matter of the submission, if found acceptable at the preliminary review stage. For this purpose, the classification of internal and external reviewer refers to whether one is a staff member at the School or not.
    2. In the absence of an internal reviewer, the submission may be referred to two external reviewers. However, the Editor-in-Chief may also refer feature articles to a third reviewer where it is found necessary.
    3. Notes/reflections may be reviewed by two internal reviewers, disregarding the requirement of external reviewer, where the Editor-in-Chief deems it adequate.
    4. Case comments and book reviews shall be reviewed by at least one reviewer with appropriate expertise. However, the editor-in-chief may also refer these manuscripts to a second reviewer where he finds it necessary. The reviewers should be provided with the e-copy of the case/the book if available.
    5. Letters and case reports shall be edited by Editorial board members.
  5. Manuscript Review Procedure- 4. Review report on manuscripts...Reviewers will be requested to review and return the manuscript within fifteen days. The anonymous reviewers shall review the article based on the following criteria and assign points out of 100% and send back the feedbacks to the Editor-in-Chief. The criteria are:
    1. Clarity...........................................................................................10%
    2. Organization.................................................................................15%
    3. Novelty and contribution to legal science....................................25%
    4. Depth of scholarship....................................................................25%
    5. Documentation.............................................................................15%
    6. Relevancy to the Ethiopian legal system or international law....10%
  1. The pass mark for eligibility of Manuscripts to be published is 65 points. Reviewer’s decision on the evaluation corresponds to the standard ratings as provided in Annex 2 (III)(2): ‘accept as it is’, ‘accept with minor revision’, ‘accept with major revision’, or ‘reject’.
  2. If a manuscript is rejected by one of the reviewers but accepted (with minor or major revision) by the other reviewer, the final decision shall be made based on the average mark.
  3. Manuscripts that get an average point of less than 65 points shall be rejected and the decision shall immediately be communicated to the authors. However, a manuscript that gets an average point of less than 65, but with 20 or more points difference between the two reviewers shall be subject to referral to a third reviewer.
  4. If a manuscript is accepted with modification, it will be returned to the author for revision.
  5. Where manuscripts are accepted with ‘minor revision’, and revised by authors, the editor-in-chief shall assign two associate editors conversant with the subject to check if the comments are incorporated properly. If approved by associate editors in consultation with the Editor-in-Chief, the manuscript shall be accepted for publication
  6. Manuscripts accepted with ‘major revision,’ and revised by authors, shall be sent, as far as possible, to previous reviewers for checking proper incorporation of comments. Where that is not feasible, the editor-in-chief shall assign two associate editors conversant with the subject to check if the comments are incorporated properly. If approved by reviewers and/or the associate editors, the manuscript shall be accepted for publication.
  7. Accepted manuscripts shall go through the language edition process.
  8. Contributors shall be notified as to whether or not their contribution will appear in the issue of the Journal under preparation for publication or in which issue of the Journal it will feature.
  9. All payments related to review shall be handled as per the directive of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education or University level guidelines, if any.
  10. 26. Special Procedure

The review of contributions submitted by the Editor-in-Chief should be coordinated by a member of the academic staff of the Law School who is not a member of the Editorial Board and to be appointed for this purpose by the Director of the Law School.

  1. Language Edition
    1. Manuscripts submitted in English shall be edited by the English language editor who is a member of the Editorial Board as stipulated in article 7 of this Editorial Policy.
    2. Where the Editorial Board deems it appropriate, manuscripts  submitted in Amharic may be edited by an Amharic language professional, preferably with background or knowledge of the la
    3. A language editor is responsible to make sure that the manuscript is of good quality in terms of language. He shall review the text and identify errors related to the use of language or adherence to writing style of the Journal.
    4. The specific editing tasks may include any of the following: correction of grammatical mistakes, misspellings, mistyping, incorrect punctuation, inconsistency in usages, poorly structured sentences, run on sentences, parts that do not make sense, wrong use of legalese, wrong units and dimensions, inconsistency in significant figures, correction of statements that conflict with the general legal science, correction of abstract, outline, headings and sub-headings, correcting chart and data presentations, correcting errors in citations, and work to ensure compliance with the style of the Journal.
    5. Amharic Language editors shall be remunerated as per the directive of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education or University level guidelines, if any.

SECTION 5

Copy Right and Distribution of the Journal

  1. Copyright
    1. The copyright owner of the manuscripts appearing in the Journal is Bahir Dar University, save otherwise agreements.
    2. The Editor-in-Chief shall ensure that manuscript contributors are aware of the copyright policy of the Journal in respect of manuscripts appearing in the Journal.
  2. The Distribution of the Journal
    1. The Managing Editor shall organize the subscription process and the distribution of the Journal in co-ordination with the Public Relation Office of Bahir Dar University.
    2. Online publication of journals should be encouraged.
  3. Complimentary Copy
    1. The author of a published manuscript is entitled to receive an e-offprint of his contribution and one complimentary copy of the issue in which his contribution appears, free of charge.
    2. Members of the Editorial Advisory Board, Reviewers, and the Law School staff are entitled to one copy each
    3. The Law Library shall receive some copies to be deposited in the Library and few for exchange purposes;
    4. The Editorial Board may decide, from time to time as deemed appropriate, to distribute up to three complimentary copies of each issue of the Journal free of charge to “institutions with a direct link to the Ethiopian justice system.” [2]

SECTION SIX

Miscellaneous Provisions

  1. Participation of students
    1. The editorial board may employ assistant editors amongst the best under graduate and post graduate students of the School who shall assist, particularly, in proof-reading of publishable manuscripts and translating court cases;
    2. The Journal, whenever possible, may feature the student essay that won the Best Student-Essay Award for the year.
  2. Special Issue

In addition to the regular issues, the Journal may publish special issues. For this purpose, special issue refers to a publication of an issue dedicated to one chosen topic in that the manuscripts constitute a collection around a theme. The editorial board may bring in a leading scholar in field as Guest Editor, who may then manage the peer review process and compile accepted articles for the issue.

  1. Special contents of the Journal
    1. Facts and Figures about the Law School: the issue of the Journal that appears in December may feature a report, to be prepared by the Dean of the Law School or a person designated by him, regarding the activities and achievements of the Law School in the preceding academic year.
    2. Messages: the Journal may also feature the message from the Dean of the Law School and the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal, on current issues and other themes which they consider deserve attention.
  2. Interpretation

This Editorial Policy shall be interpreted and applied in accordance with the research and publication policy and guideline of the University.

  1. Amendments

This Editorial Policy may be amended by the decision of the Academic Council upon the proposal of the Editorial Board.

  1. Entry into Force

This editorial policy is adopted by the Academic Council of the Law School and has entered into force as of November 2020.

  1. Disclaimer

Opinions expressed in the Journal, except the message from the Dean of the Law School and the Editor-in-Chief, reflect the views of the authors and not that of the Journal or the Editorial board or the Law School.

Annex 1-Citation Rule- Customized version of the Blue Book Citation Rules

      I.         Preliminaries on citation

  1. All contributions should duly acknowledge any reference or quotations from the work of other authors or the previous work of the author.
  2. Reference shall be made in the original language of the source document referred to.
  3. Bahir Dar University Journal of Law follows footnote citation style, which is the customized version of the Blue Book Citation Rules. References in footnotes should generally contain sufficient information about the source material, and footnote numbers are placed outside of punctuation marks.
  4. Where this customized version falls short of completeness for a specific citation, Authors should resort to the latest editions of the Blue Book Citation Rules.
  5. Some citation rules to note:
    • Italicization-All words not from the language in which the manuscript is written must be italicized.
    • Emphasis -To indicate emphasis use italics.
    • Quotations:
      • Quotations of more than 49 words should be indented left and right without any quotation marks. Quotation marks in the block should appear as they normally do. Quotations of less than 49 words should be in quotation marks and not indented from the text.
      • Regarding alterations in a quotation:
  1. Square bracket “[ ]”-use it to note any change in the quoted material,
  2. Ellipsis “(…)” -use it to indicate omitted material,
  • “[sic]”- use it to indicate mistake in the original quote.

   II.         Illustrations for the various types of sources in footnote citation.

 In general, references should have the content and style outlined below in the illustrations for the various types of sources.

  • Authored Book- (Italicize title of the book)

       Andrew Burrows, Remedies for Torts and Breach of Contract, 3rd edition, Oxford University Press, (2004), p. 317.

  • Book with Volumes- (Italicize title of the book)

       Julian Roberts and Mike Hough, Public Opinion and the Jury: An International Literature Review, Ministry of Justice Research Series 1/09, (2009), p. 42

  • Contributions in edited books- (Italicize title of the book)

       Dieter Fleck, the Law of Non-International Armed Conflicts, in Dieter Fleck, (ed.), The Handbook of International Humanitarian Law, Second Edition, Oxford University Press, (2008), p. 613

  • Journal Articles -(Italicize name of the journal)

       Alebachew Birhanu, Transitional Justice through Prosecution: The Ethiopian Red-Terror Trial in Retrospect, Bahir Dar University Journal of Law, Vol. 1: No.1, (2010), p. 127

  • Online Journal Articles -(Italicize name of the journal)

       Graham Greenleaf, The Global Development of Free Access to Legal Information, European Journal Law and Technology, Vol.1: No.1, (2010),  http://ejlt.org/article/view/17 (accesssed Oct. 27, 2010).

  • Forthcoming Articles

       Cite forthcoming articles in the same way as published articles, following the citation with ‘(forthcoming)’. If volume and/or page numbers are not yet known, simply omit that information.

  • Laws -(Italicize name of the Gazetta)

       The Constitution of Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Proclamation No.1/1995, Federal Negarit Gazetta, (1995), Article 9.

       Revised Family Code, Proclamation No. 213/2000, Federal Negarit Gazetta, (2000), Article 1.

  • Treaties

       Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT), United Nations, Treaty Series, Vol. 1155, (1969), Article 31.

  • Resolutions

       General Assembly Resolution 67/97, The Rule of Law at the National and International levels, A/RES/67/97, (Dec.14, 2012), www.un.org/en/ga/67/resolutions.shtml (accessed Mar. 19, 2015).

  • Cases (Italicize name of the parties)

       Landinelli Silva et al. v. Uruguay, Communication No. 34/1978, Human Rights Committee (HRC), CCPR/C/12/D/34/1978, (April 8, 1981) para 9.

       የኢትዮጵያ _መድን _ድርጅት _vs. ጊታሁን _ሀይሉ፤ _ጠቅላይ _ፍርድ _ቤት _ሰበር _ሰሚ ችሎት ፤ መ.ቁ. 14057፤_1998 á‹“.ም.

  • Conference Papers

       Ben McFarlane and Donal Nolan, Remedying Reliance: The Future Development of Promissory and Proprietary Estoppel in English Law, Obligations III conference, Brisbane, (2006), p. 25.

  • Theses

       Javan Herberg, Injunctive Relief for Wrongful Termination of Employment, DPhil thesis, University of Oxford, (1989), p. 10 12.

  • Websites and Blogs

       Sarah Cole, Virtual Friend Fires Employee, Naked Law, (May 1, 2009), www.nakedlaw.com/2009/05/index.html (accessed Nov. 19, 2009).

  • Newspaper Articles -(Italicize name of the newspaper)

       Kassahun Chanie, NBE Devalues Birr and Adjusts Interest Rate, The Ethiopian Herald, (Oct. 11, 2017), p. 1.

  • Press Releases -(Italicize title of the press release)

       The White House, Office of the Press Secretary, Secure the Border by Deterring and Swiftly Removing Illegal Entrants, Oct. 08, 2017.

  • Interview

       Interview with Elias Hizkeal, Department Head, School of Law, Bahir Dar University, ( Aug. 4,  2003).

 

  • Short Form Citations
    1. Id and Supra note.
  • Use id. if the authority is the same as the immediately preceding authority.
  • Use supra note if not referring to the immediately preceding authority.

E.g.1. Stephen J. Legatzke, The Equitable Recoupment Doctrine in United States v. Dalm: Where’s the Equity, Va. Tax Rev., Vol. 10: No. 1, (1991), pp. 861-863.

  • , p. 862.
  • Legatzke, supra note 1.
  • Legatzke, supra note 1, p.22.

E.g. 2. The Constitution of Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Proclamation No.1/1995, Federal Negarit Gazetta, (1995), Article 9, [hereinafter FDRE Const.].

  • , Article 98.
  • FDRE Const., supra note 2.
  • FDRE Const., supra note 2, Article 48.

 

  1. “Infra” (below)
  • Use “infra” only to refer to a point that is made in a later section of your document. “Infra” is never used to refer to cited authority.

Authors need to provide a full citation the first time they refer to an authority.  “Infra” is never used to refer to cited authority. You would use “infra” only to refer to a point that is made in a later section of your document.

E.g.

See cases cited infra note 121.

See discussion infra Part III.A.

See infra pp. 94-97.

See infra Figure 5.

  • "Hereinafter"
  • Generally, "hereinafter" can be used to shorten names of cited authorities. At the end of the first full citation the authority but before any explanatory parenthetical, place the word "hereinafter" and the shortened form in square brackets.

E.g.

  • Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT), United Nations, Treaty Series, Vol. 1155, (1969), Article 31[hereinafter Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties].
  • Revised Family Code, Proclamation No. 213/2000, Federal Negarit Gazetta, (2000), Article 1[hereinafter Revised Family Code].
  • Trade Competition and Consumers Protection Proclamation, Proclamation No. 813/2013, Federal Negarit Gazetta, (2013) [hereinafter Trade Competition Proc. No. 813/2013].
    • , Article 9.
    • Trade Competition Proc. No. 813/2013, supra note...

 

 

 

Annex 2-Manuscript Review Instruction and Criteria

  1. Review instructions

Dear reviewer, we endeavor to scale up the quality of legal scholarship and in that regard we rely on your diligence and expertise on the subject matter. Please note the following instructions before proceeding with the reviewing task.

  1. Review reports are expected to be due within 2 weeks of the receipt.
  2. Should you have circumstances (conflict of interest) that prevent you from giving objective and impartial recommendation, please feel free to tell us.
  3. The identity of reviewers is strictly confidential.
  4. The reviewer should assess the manuscript’s strengths and weaknesses based on these six criteria (see footnote below for clarification): clarity of presentation; Organization; Novelty and contribution to legal science; depth of scholarship; Documentation; and Relevancy to the Journal’s Editorial Content Policy
  5. Reviewers are expected to provide detailed in-text comments and also general comments separately (see section II below).
  6. Comments are expected to be clear, objective, and constructive.
  7. Reviewer reports will be forwarded to the author except those parts that are exclusively addressed to the editor-in-chief. Thus, reviewers should be respectful and confidential in forwarding their comments.
  8. Please don’t hesitate to forward comments that would enable the editor-in-chief to make a decision on the manuscript.
  9. Ethical issues such as prior publication of the work; plagiarism; or dishonesty should be noted, if detected.
  10. Correction of language problems is welcome but not required. Please mention in your report when the manuscript needs substantial language edition.
  11. The editorial board gratefully honors reviewer’s recommendations but, since the editorial decisions are usually based on evaluations of several reviewers, the reviewer should not expect every recommendation to be taken as it is.
  12. In exceptional cases where the author responds with substantial critique to the comments by the reviewer, we may ask the reviewer to re-review the manuscript.
  13. The name of the reviewers shall appear in the Journal’s list of reviewers.
  1. Comments to the Author

Please write in detail your dispassionate and non-abrasive comments in plain language

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


  • Manuscript Review criteria and evaluation results (addressed exclusively for the Editor-in-Chief)

Reviewer’s Code: -----------------------------; Manuscript Code No.:-----------

  1. Marking: Please mark the article for the following aspects. The pass mark for publication is 65%.  However, a high score does not assure acceptance for publication.

S.N

Criterion

Max. Mark (of 100%)

Mark earned

 

1

Clarity[3]

10%

 

2

Organization[4]

15%

 

3

Novelty and contribution to legal science[5]           

25%

 

4

Depth of scholarship[6]

25%

 

5

Documentation[7]

15%

 

6

Relevancy to the Ethiopian legal system.[8]

10%

 

  Total mark earned

 


  1. Please rate the publishability of the manuscript. (Mark an X)

 

Publishable as it is (≥90%)

 

Publishable with minor revision (≥80%)

 

Publishable with major revision (≥65%)

 

Not publishable (<65%)

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. Any Comment/notes to the editor-in-chief

Please feel free to forward remarks (only if you want to) about the manuscript which you think should be addressed exclusively to the editor-in-chief.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

[1] The book must be current, not more than five years since its publication.

[2] The list of eligible institutions may include:

  1. Institute of Ethiopian studies;
  2. Partner universities;
  • The Federal Supreme Court;
  1. The Federal Attorney General Office;
  2. The ANRS Supreme Court;
  3. ANRS High Courts;
  • ANRS Attorney General Office
  • Ethiopian Human Rights Commission;
  1. Ethiopian Lawyers Association;
  2. Justice and Legal System Research Institute; and
  3. ANRS Justice Organ Professionals Training Centre.
  • Other institutions as the Editorial Board deem it appropriate.

 

[3] This criterion is to be used to test whether the manuscript is clearly presented. In assessing the clarity of the manuscript the following questions should be considered: Is the overall presentation clear? Does it use easy-to-understand language and writing style that is understandable for the common legal professional? Does the author clarify concepts and points with a view to make the presentation clearer? Is the purpose of the manuscript apparent? Are any areas vague or difficult to understand? Are there any contradictions or inconsistencies? Does the paper stay focused? Does a brief and comprehensive title reflect the contents of the paper? Does the abstract provide a concise and clear summary of the paper? Does the article have an introduction that presents the readers with an accurate idea of the nature of the subject matter under investigation?

[4] This criterion is intended to test the overall structure of the manuscript. Things that need    to be considered in this regard are: Is the paper well-structured and coherent? Are ideas developed and related in logical sequence? Are sentences and paragraphs constructed appropriately to support the central idea? Are transitions between discussions smooth and easy to follow? Is there internal consistency? Is the content consistent with the central purpose of the paper? Is there logical progression of topics and completeness of the text? Does it lack conciseness or contain unnecessary material?

[5] This criterion is intended to test the manuscript contributes something new to our collective knowledge. Questions that need to be considered in this regard include: Is the writer’s coverage of the topic in a way that advances understanding of the subject area? Does the writer primarily focus on his own analysis and interpretation? Does the writer cover the relevant literature with his own voice/argument? Does the manuscript present new, innovative, important and insightful ideas? Does the author simply reproduce and paraphrase already published works? Does it add something new to our knowledge on the topic or is it a systematic repetition of what has been already said?

[6] The other quality required of a good manuscript is the depth of analysis/thoroughness of presentation. The framing of the issue, the analysis and construction of the manuscript should exhibit the standard required of an academic scholarship. Validity of premises and proper understanding of the issue by the author must be clearly visible. It should follow generally accepted methods of scientific writing and be rigorous, critical and analytical and exhibit objective and balanced discussion by acknowledging alternative views. The argument should be complete... The obvious available resources should be noted and used. The relevant issues should be discussed and when criticisms are voiced tenable solutions should be suggested.

[7] Does the author cite references as necessary? Is the number and quality of references adequate? Do the references represent authoritative sources? Has the most recent references on the topic been used?

[8] The Journal gives priority for contributions pertaining to Ethiopian laws and international law issues relevant to human rights and commerce.