Introduction

The Legal Studies Collection arises in 2023 as a UCM initiative to group in monographs the current research in different areas of legal knowledge, considered influential for the public interest, so as to spread this scientific research in both an academic and public environment.

For its proper functioning, the Advisory Board is built out of a group of experts of different contexts, including Professors, as well as Senior Lecturers, and Lectures, aiming to the promotion of research and participation from different academic perspectives.

Scope

The Collection is aimed at the publishing of academic texts from single or collective authors, approached from an interdisciplinary perspective in the Legal-Public field (allowing other areas such as Theory of Law, or Philosophy), which boost critical thinking and new scientific proposals, and reach different national, European and international issues.

Single or collective author manuscripts will be accepted as long as they attach to the requirements demanded by the Collection; the volume must shows thematic unity and coherence, too. At least 50% of the authorships shall not be linked to the Complutense University of Madrid.

Text in Spanish or English are admitted, nevertheless other languages such as Italian, Portuguese, French or German might be exceptionally included.

Goals

• To communicate research updates to society.
• To promote the interdisciplinary analysis in Legal Studies.
• To impulse critical thinking.
• To motivate new formal and material perspectives in legal subjects.

Themes

• Theory of Law and Philosophy in Law studies.
• State, Communitarian or International Law.
• Economic Studies.
• Bio-Law and Human Rights.

Editorial policy:

Stage one: manuscript reception

Requests for publication must be made using the official form and will be registered according to their date of arrival, with confirmation of receipt being sent within ten working days.

They will subsequently be passed to the Chair of the Collection together with all the other documentation submitted for review at the Scientific Committee under publishing policy criteria, and a decision will be taken within forty-five working days from receipt.

• If it is approved, the author must submit the full text of the work within six months, if not already submitted, in accordance with the publishing guidelinesavailable on the website. Once the full text has been received and subjected to the corresponding anti-plagiarism analysis, it will be reviewed by the technical staff of Ediciones Complutense in order to ensure that it meets the publication rules of the publisher.
• If the request is rejected, the Editorial Board of Ediciones Complutense will issue the corresponding reasoned report within ninety working days.

Stage two: evaluation and revision

The work will then be anonymised and submitted for review and reporting to two specialists of recognised standing in the field with no ties either to the institution to which the author belongs or Universidad Complutense de Madrid, the Editorial Board of Ediciones Complutense and the Scientific Committee of the collection. In the event of a discrepancy, the opinion of a third reviewer will be taken into consideration. The reviewers will be proposed by the Scientific Committee of the collection and they must return their reports within thirty working days.

Reviewers and members of the Scientific Committee of the collection and the Editorial Board of Ediciones Complutense must refrain from taking decisions in any of the following situations:

• A direct relationship exists between an author and a reviewer.
• Recent and significant professional collaboration exists between the author and the reviewer.
• The reviewer is collaborating on the work sent to them.
• The reviewer believes they cannot be objective, whether for personal reasons or an interest of a financial nature.

When at least two reports are favourable (publishable / publishable with corrections), the considerations expressed by the external reviewer(s) for inclusion will be sent to the author anonymously.

The Scientific Committee of the collection will issue a reasoned ruling within thirty working days from reception of the reports from the reviewer(s), which it will pass to the Editorial Board of Ediciones Complutense alongside said reports. The latter will adopt a final decision within thirty working days. 

If the result is favourable, the author must deliver the declaration of good practice and transfer of rights as a preliminary step before signing the publishing contract. If the original includes figures, photographs, maps, graphics or any other kind of illustration or image, the author must also provide documentary evidence that the same are not subject to rights or that the pertinent reproduction authorisation has been obtained.

The author will be entitled to receive two proofs for correction. The first will be delivered within twenty working days from the date of receipt of the original final manuscript and the second within fifteen working days from the date of receipt of the first corrected proofs. The correction process will consist of checking the proofs against the original and, where appropriate, including any essential last-minute additions, the publication of which is subject to a decision from Ediciones Complutense.

Finally, the book will be published within sixty working days from receipt of the final page proofs corrected by the author.

For further information, we recommend consulting the sections on instructions to authors, instructions for reviewers, original manuscript selection and review process, original manuscript selection diagram and portfolio services.

 

Editorial criteria

Generally speaking, publication proposals for conference proceedings, project results reports, translations of works that do not include a critical study, facsimile editions, master’s dissertations and doctoral dissertations that have not been reformulated for publication will not be accepted.

Submitted works must meet the publication guidelines of the Publisher and fall under the themes of the collection. They must also meet the requirements on originality, scientific interest, relevance to the topic, conceptual and methodological rigour, contribution to knowledge, internal coherence of the text and clear explanations, valid and sound conclusions, and sufficient and up-to-date bibliography.

Works must be submitted alongside the corresponding declarations of authorship and of good practice and transfer of rights, and will be examined by anti-plagiarism software.

If the publication will receive external funding, the author must specify the amount thereof and the name of the partner entity.

Pursuant to Spanish legal regulations, all those works with ethical implications (research in humans or the use of biological samples of human origin, use of human embryonic stem cells or lines taken from them, clinical trials, use of personal data and genetic information, animal experimentation, use of biological agents of risk to human or animal health or the environment, confined use of genetically modified organisms - GMO, release of GMO) must have the corresponding report from the Research Ethics Committee of the corresponding centre for publication, in accordance with Spanish Law 14/2007 (OSG of 4 July 2007), the purposes of which are contained in Article 12.

If the original includes figures, photographs, maps, graphics or any other kind of illustration or image, the author must provide documentary evidence that the same are not subject to rights or that the pertinent reproduction authorisation has been obtained.

For further information, we recommend consulting the sections on instructions to authors.

Terms and conditions for authors on the self-archiving of their work in institutional or themed repositories.

The publishing contracts signed by Ediciones Complutense are governed by the provisions of Royal Legislative Decree 1/11996, of 12 April, Consolidated Text of the Intellectual Property Act.

Generally speaking, the contract will have a duration of ten years from the date on which it is signed and it may be automatically renewed for successive periods of five years provided that neither of the parties duly notifies the other party in writing of its wish to not renew. Upon expiry of the contract on any grounds, Ediciones Complutense will enjoy preferential option rights to republish the work under the same terms and conditions as those that the author may agree with third parties.

Besides the general contract expiry grounds and in terms of publishing matters (reproduction and distribution rights over the work), the contract will expire on the following grounds:

1. Upon expiry of the agreed period.
2. Following the sale of all copies, if this was the publication purpose.
3. Following ten years from the transfer, if remuneration was exclusively agreed as standard pursuant to the provisions of Article 46, Section 2.d, of the Spanish Intellectual Property Act.
4. At any event, at 15 years after Ediciones Complutense has been authorised by the author to reproduce the work.

Upon expiry of the contract and unless provisions exist to the contrary, the publisher may dispose of any copies of the work it possesses within the three following years and in any agreed manner of distribution. The author may purchase said copies at 60% of the retail price or the price determined by an expert, or may opt to exercise their pre-emption right over the retail price. Said disposal will be subject to the terms and conditions established in the expired contract.

The inclusion of published books in institutional or themed repositories must always have prior permission from Ediciones Complutense.