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Final Manuscript Preparation Guidelines for Indian Journal of Law and Technology

This document provides details on typesetting and layout requirements pertaining to manuscript submission to Indian Journal of Law and Technology.

Formatting Requirements

  • The body of the paper should be in Times New Roman, font size 12, with a 1.5 line spacing. Footnotes should be in Times New Roman, size 10 single line spacing.
  • The references must be pin-cited and provided as footnotes as per the 4th edition of the Oxford University Standard for the Citation of Legal Authorities (‘OSCOLA’) format. Please go through the OSCOLA guide scrupulously so as to ensure strict adherence.
  • For Indian cases, please use either the All-India Reporter (‘AIR’) or Supreme Court Cases (‘SCC’) or Supreme Court Reporter (‘SCR’) citations as far as possible.
  • Submit your manuscript, including tables, figures, appendices, etc., as a single Word file
  • Page size should be 8.5 x 11-inches.
  • All margins (left, right, top and bottom) should be 1.5 inches (3.8 cm), including your tables and figures.
  • Use a single column layout with both left and right margins justified.
  • If figures are included, use high-resolution figures, preferably encoded as encapsulated PostScript (eps).
  • Copyedit your manuscript.
  • When possible, there should be no pages where more than a quarter of the page is empty space.

    • Additional Recommendations

    Indenting, Line Spacing, and Justification

    Indent all paragraphs except those following a section heading. An indent should be at least 2 em-spaces.

    Do not insert extra space between paragraphs of text with the exception of long quotations, theorems, propositions, special remarks, etc. These should be set off from the surrounding text by additional space above and below.

    Don't "widow" or "orphan" text (i.e., ending a page with the first line of a paragraph or beginning a page with the last line of a paragraph).

    All text should be left-justified (i.e., flush with the left margin—except where indented). Where possible, it should also be right-justified (i.e., flush with the right margin). "Where possible" refers to the quality of the justification. For example, LaTeX and TeX do an excellent job of justifying text. Word does a reasonable job. But some word processors do a lousy job (e.g., they achieve right justification by inserting too much white space within and between words). We prefer flush right margins. However, it is better to have jagged right margins than to have flush right margins with awkward intra- and inter-word spacing. Make your decision on whichever looks best.

    Language & Grammar

    All submissions must be in English. Except for common foreign words and phrases, the use of foreign words and phrases should be avoided. Latin maxims or concepts to be italicized

    Authors should use British English. Academic Legal Writing by Eugene Volokh is the "standard" guide.

    Emphasized text

    Whenever possible use italics to indicate text you wish to emphasize rather than underlining it. The use of color to emphasize text is discouraged.

    Font faces

    Except, possibly, where special symbols are needed, use Times New Roman.

    Font size

    The main body of text should be set in 12pt.

    Foreign terms

    Whenever possible, foreign terms should be set in italics rather than underlined. This convention does not apply to foreign terms that have been accepted into common English usage (for instance, status quo).

    Headings

    Headings (e.g., start of sections) should be distinguished from the main body text by small caps. Use the same font face for all headings. The different headings may be indicated by the below convention:

    • I. Heading 1 (Bold, Small Caps in font, Centre Alignment, Times New Roman, Roman Numbering for the heading, Font Size 12).
    • A. Heading 2 (Bold, Centre Alignment, Times New Roman, Alphabetical Numbering, Font Size 12).
    • 1. Heading 3 (Bold, Italicised, Centre Alignment, Times New Roman, Arabic Numerals for the Heading Font Size 12).
    • 1. Heading 4 (Italicised, Left Alignment, Times New Roman, Font Size 12)
    There should be space above and below headings.

    Main text

    The font for the main body of text must be black and, if at all possible, in Times New Roman available.

    Titles

    Whenever possible, titles of books, movies, etc., should be set in italics rather than underlined.

    Footnotes

    Footnotes should be as per the OSCOLA (4th Edition) format. They must appear at the bottom of the page on which they are referenced rather than at the end of the paper. Footnotes should be in 10 pt. Times New Roman, they should be single-spaced, and there should be a footnote separator rule (line). Footnote numbers in the text must follow, rather than precede, punctuation. All footnotes should be left and right-justified (i.e., flush with the right margin), unless this creates awkward spacing.

    Tables and Figures

    To the extent possible, tables and figures should appear in the document near where they are referenced in the text. Large tables or figures should be put on pages by themselves. Avoid the use of overly small type in tables. In no case should tables or figures be in a separate document or file. All tables and figures must fit within 1.5" margins on all sides (top, bottom, left and right) in both portrait and landscape view.