Retractions & Corrections

The CLRS Journal of Global Justice & Governance (ISSN: 3049-1940), published by the Centre for Legal Research and Studies, is a diamond open-access, peer-reviewed journal dedicated to advancing legal scholarship in global justice and global governance. Our commitment to these principles extends to ensuring the integrity, accuracy, and transparency of all published content. This policy, aligned with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines, outlines our procedures for retractions, corrections, and editorial statements to uphold fairness, accountability, and trust in international law scholarship.

1. Retractions

Retraction is a formal mechanism to withdraw an article when its credibility or integrity is compromised, undermining its contribution to global justice or global governance. Retractions will be considered in the following cases, per COPE guidelines:

  • Research Misconduct: Plagiarism, data fabrication, or falsification invalidating findings related to international legal frameworks, justice mechanisms, or governance structures.
  • Duplicate Publication: Redundant publication elsewhere without disclosure, violating originality standards.
  • Critical Errors: Significant inaccuracies (e.g., flawed legal analysis or data) rendering conclusions unreliable, especially if they misrepresent global justice or governance issues.
  • Authorship Violations: Fraudulent authorship claims breaching ethical standards of equitable collaboration.
  • Ethical or Legal Breaches: Content violating copyright, confidentiality, or international legal norms relevant to the journal’s focus.

Retraction Process:

  1. Concerns may be raised by authors, readers, or stakeholders via editor.jgjg@academyclrs.org.
  2. The Editorial Board will investigate, consulting authors and, if needed, experts in global justice or governance.
  3. The Editor-in-Chief, in consultation with the Editorial Board, will make the final retraction decision.
  4. If approved, a retraction notice will be published, linked to the article’s DOI, and labeled “Retracted” on the journal’s website.
  5. The original article will remain online with a retraction watermark, preserving the scholarly record per COPE standards, and CrossRef metadata will be updated.

Author-Initiated Retraction Requests Without Reason:
If an author requests retraction without providing a reason, the Editorial Board will:

  • Request a detailed explanation from the author to assess the basis for the request.
  • Review the article independently if no reason is provided, to identify any issues justifying retraction (e.g., errors, misconduct, or breaches of global justice or governance principles).
  • Deny the request if no valid reason is given and no issues are found, as retraction without cause is not supported under COPE guidelines. The journal reserves the right to maintain the article as part of the scholarly record unless evidence warrants withdrawal.
  • Document the request and outcome for transparency, ensuring accountability consistent with our mission.

Retractions uphold the integrity of legal scholarship on global justice and governance, not to penalize unintentional errors or accommodate unexplained author requests.

2. Corrections (Errata and Corrigenda)

Corrections address errors that do not require retraction but affect the accuracy or clarity of scholarship on global justice and global governance. They include:

  • Erratum: Publisher-induced errors (e.g., typesetting or formatting mistakes) unrelated to substantive content.
  • Corrigendum: Author-related errors (e.g., minor inaccuracies in legal citations, data, or omissions) not altering core arguments on justice or governance.

Criteria for Corrections:

  • The error impacts readability, legal accuracy, or attribution but does not undermine the article’s validity within global justice or governance domains.
  • Correction prevents misinterpretation of legal principles or governance mechanisms.

Correction Process:

  1. Requests may be submitted to editor.jgjg@academyclrs.org with evidence of the error.
  2. The Editorial Board will assess and, if approved, collaborate with authors to issue a correction notice.
  3. The notice will be published as a separate article, linked to the original via its DOI, and labeled “Erratum” or “Corrigendum.”
  4. The original article will be updated online with a reference to the correction, and CrossRef metadata will be amended per Scopus expectations.
  5. Minor errors (e.g., typographical) may be corrected silently if they do not affect meaning, at the Editorial Board’s discretion.

3. Editorial Statements

Editorial statements address issues or provide clarifications upholding the journal’s focus on global justice and global governance. These include:

  • Expressions of Concern: Issued when credible doubts arise about an article’s integrity (e.g., potential misconduct under review) that could impact its relevance to global justice or governance, per COPE guidance.
    • Notices will be updated with a resolution once investigations conclude.
  • Clarifications: Statements resolving ambiguity in content, authorship, or editorial decisions related to the journal’s mission.
  • Editorial Notes: Commentary on significant developments in global justice or governance (e.g., new legal precedents or reforms) to contextualize the journal’s work.

Process for Editorial Statements:

  1. Statements may be initiated by the Editorial Board or prompted by stakeholder feedback.
  2. They will be published online as standalone pieces, assigned a DOI, and linked to relevant articles if applicable.
  3. Readers will be informed via the journal’s website and, where appropriate, additional channels.

4. Guiding Principles

  • Transparency: All actions will be documented clearly, reflecting governance accountability principles.
  • Timeliness: Issues will be addressed promptly to minimize harm, consistent with justice urgency.
  • Fairness: Authors will have the opportunity to respond, embodying equitable processes per COPE.
  • Scholarly Record: Original articles will remain accessible with notations, preserving research integrity.
  • Compliance: This policy adheres to COPE guidelines and meets Scopus’s ethical publishing standards.

Contact

To report concerns or seek clarification, email editor.jgjg@academyclrs.org. Inquiries will be handled confidentially and reviewed by the Editorial Board in line with this policy.