PUBLICATION ETHICS

Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

Comparative Law and Sustainable Development (CLSD) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics, academic integrity, and responsible scholarly publishing. This policy applies to authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher throughout the submission, peer-review, publication, and post-publication processes. The journal follows the principles and best practices of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

1. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors must submit original, accurate, and unpublished work and ensure that manuscripts are not under consideration by another journal. Authors are responsible for the integrity of their research, appropriate citation of sources, and accurate presentation of data and findings.

Plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, duplicate publication, redundant publication, citation manipulation, and other forms of academic misconduct are strictly prohibited. Manuscripts may be screened using plagiarism-detection software.

Authorship must reflect substantial intellectual contributions to the research. All listed authors must approve the final manuscript and agree to its submission. Individuals who do not meet authorship criteria should be appropriately acknowledged.

Authors must disclose relevant funding, conflicts of interest, and ethical approvals where applicable. Research involving human participants, personal data, or other ethically sensitive subjects must comply with applicable ethical standards and obtain appropriate approval and informed consent where required.

Authors should provide a Data Availability Statement where applicable. If research data cannot be shared because of legal, ethical, privacy, or confidentiality restrictions, the reasons should be clearly stated.

Authors are responsible for notifying the editor promptly if a significant error is identified in a published article and must cooperate with the journal in issuing a correction, retraction, or other appropriate notice.

2. Responsibilities of Editors

Editors are responsible for ensuring that manuscripts are evaluated fairly, objectively, confidentially, and consistently. Editorial decisions are based on scholarly quality, originality, relevance, methodological rigor, and the journal’s scope, without discrimination based on personal, institutional, political, religious, ethnic, or other characteristics.

Editors must select appropriate and independent reviewers, manage conflicts of interest, maintain confidentiality, and ensure the integrity of the peer-review process. Editors must not use unpublished information from submitted manuscripts for personal or professional advantage.

Editors are also responsible for investigating complaints, appeals, and allegations of misconduct in accordance with established ethical standards and COPE principles.

3. Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers must treat manuscripts as confidential documents and evaluate them objectively, constructively, and within the agreed timeframe.

Reviewers should assess the manuscript’s originality, methodological rigor, scholarly contribution, and appropriate use of references. They should identify relevant overlooked sources and alert the editor to suspected plagiarism, duplicate publication, data manipulation, or other ethical concerns.

Reviewers must disclose any conflict of interest and decline the review when their impartiality may be compromised. Reviewers must not use unpublished information obtained through peer review for personal or professional purposes.

4. Responsibilities of the Publisher

Universitas Negeri Surabaya (UNESA), as the publisher of Comparative Law and Sustainable Development, supports editorial independence and is committed to maintaining ethical publishing practices. The publisher provides appropriate support for the journal’s editorial processes, ethical oversight, digital preservation, and long-term accessibility of published content.

5. Research Misconduct

Research misconduct includes, but is not limited to, plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, duplicate publication, citation manipulation, authorship misconduct, undisclosed conflicts of interest, and violations of research ethics.

The journal takes reasonable measures to prevent and identify misconduct through editorial screening, plagiarism checks, peer review, and ethical assessment. Allegations of misconduct are investigated fairly, confidentially, and objectively. Depending on the circumstances, actions may include rejection, correction, retraction, expression of concern, or referral to the relevant institution or authority.

6. Conflicts of Interest

All authors, editors, and reviewers must disclose any financial, professional, institutional, or personal interests that could influence or reasonably be perceived to influence the research, review, or editorial decision. Individuals with significant conflicts should recuse themselves from the relevant process.

7. Corrections, Retractions, and Post-Publication Issues

The journal is committed to maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record. Where significant errors or ethical concerns are identified after publication, the journal may publish a correction, retraction, or expression of concern, as appropriate.

Authors, reviewers, and readers are encouraged to report suspected errors or ethical concerns to the editorial office. All allegations and post-publication concerns will be assessed in accordance with the journal’s ethical policies and applicable COPE guidelines.

8. Intellectual Property and Licensing

Authors retain copyright of their published work unless otherwise agreed. Articles are published under the journal’s stated copyright and licensing terms. Authors and third parties must comply with the applicable license when reproducing, distributing, or otherwise using published content.