Read these guidelines in full before submitting. They apply to every manuscript category and are the standard against which the editorial office screens a submission.

1. Scope and originality

Manuscripts must fall within the journal's aims and scope and must be original and unpublished. Submission represents a warranty that the manuscript is not under consideration by any other journal.

2. Manuscript types and length

Research Article	4,000 – 10,000 words (excluding footnotes)
Review Article	4,000 – 10,000 words
Case Study / Case Comment	2,000 – 5,000 words
Essay	2,500 – 4,000 words
Legislative & Current Developments	1,500 – 3,000 words
Book Review	1,000 – 2,000 words

Manuscripts of 2,000 to 3,500 words are the length preferred by the legal databases that index IJILR content. Longer manuscripts within the limits above are accepted; concise writing improves the chance of onward indexing.

3. Formatting

File format	.doc or .docx (not PDF)
Page size	A4, single column
Body text	Times New Roman, 12 pt, 1.5 spacing, justified
Footnotes	Times New Roman, 10 pt, single spaced
Margins	1 inch on all sides
Citations	Footnotes only. No endnotes, no in-text citations
Abstract	Not more than 200 words
Keywords	Five
First footnote	Author's designation and institution (added to the final accepted version; see section 5)

4. Citation style

IJILR requires footnote citation. The journal accepts Bluebook (20th ed.), OSCOLA (4th ed.) or ILI (Indian Law Institute) style, applied consistently throughout a single manuscript. In addition:

• Indian judgments must carry the Manupatra citation (for example MANU/SC/0133/1978) or the court's neutral citation (for example 2024 INSC 123, 2024:DHC:1234) alongside the reporter citation.
• Cite primary sources: the court's own website or official reporter for judgments, the Gazette or the Ministry's text for statutes, and the issuing body for reports.
• Do not cite or link CaseMine, iPleaders, Indian Kanoon or SCC Online. Manuscripts that rely on these as sources are returned for correction before review.

Worked examples for each style are in the Citation Style Guide.

5. Anonymity and the author footnote

Review is double-blind. The review copy must carry no author names, acknowledgements or institutional identifiers, and identifying metadata must be removed from the file properties. Author details are collected through the submission form.

On acceptance, the final version must carry, in the first footnote attached to the title, each author's full name, designation and institution, and the corresponding author's email. This footnote is a requirement of the databases that index the journal.

6. Authorship

A maximum of three authors is accepted per manuscript. One author must be designated corresponding author.

7. Similarity and plagiarism

Every manuscript is screened through Turnitin on receipt. The overall similarity index, excluding quotations and references, must be below 15 per cent. Manuscripts above that level are returned to the author for revision before review.

8. Use of AI tools

Generative AI may be used for language editing and must be disclosed. AI systems cannot be listed as authors. Authors must independently verify every legal citation against the primary source: AI tools are known to fabricate case citations, and a manuscript containing fabricated citations will be rejected.

9. Copyright and licensing

Authors retain copyright. Accepted articles are published under CC BY 4.0. Submission grants IJILR the right of first publication and the right to supply the published article to indexing and abstracting services.

10. Author obligations during review

Participation in the peer review process is mandatory. Authors must respond to suggested changes point by point and resubmit within the time allowed. A manuscript is not published unless the required changes are discussed and made.

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