General Information
The Harvard International Law Journal is currently reviewing article submissions for Volume 63, Issue 1.
We seek to publish innovative, original scholarship that makes a significant contribution to the field of international law. We welcome submissions from legal scholars, practitioners, and doctoral degree candidates on topics of private or public international law and related fields, including interdisciplinary work. We also publish articles on foreign or comparative law if they significantly engage with issues of international law. All submissions from current J.D. and LLM students should be made through our Student Note Competition.
Timing
Because we strive to publish excellent and original work, submissions to the Journal are subject to several levels of review by members of our Submissions Committee and Executive Board in advance of a vote. The comprehensive process typically takes roughly three weeks once articles are submitted. We encourage authors to file expedite requests if they have competing publication offers, as we will do our best to accommodate deadlines.
We review articles twice yearly, at the start of each semester. Generally, the Submissions Committee meets for its first session in late January through April, and its second session in September through November. While we do accept submissions via Scholastica throughout the year, articles submitted in spring, summer, and late fall will be reserved for consideration during one of our two submissions sessions unless we have granted a request for expedited review.
Requirements
While we may accept articles of up to 30,000 words, we prefer submissions of between 15,000 and 20,000 words, including footnotes. All articles should be typed in English with text double-spaced, and footnotes should conform with The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation (20th Ed.). Manuscripts must be submitted online via Scholastica; articles submitted by email for print publication will not be considered. Shorter, feature-length pieces may be considered for publication in the Harvard International Law Journal‘s online edition, which has a different submissions process.
In addition to the article manuscript, submissions should include:
- a short abstract of no more than 250 words
- a CV with a list of recent publications
- up-to-date contact information
Additionally, Scholastica charges a $6.50 submission fee per article. If this fee poses a financial burden, please contact the Managing Editors.
Selection Process
Articles will be reviewed by a Submissions Committee comprised of J.D. and LL.M./S.J.D candidates, and may also be reviewed by our faculty advisors and/or scholars in our peer network. If short-listed, the article will be sent to the ILJ Executive Board for a final decision. We endeavor to respond to authors within a month of receiving a submission, but we are unfortunately unable to provide feedback for articles that are not selected.
Once an article has been selected, the Managing Editors will contact the author with a contract and further information on the publication process. The ILJ editorial process is a rigorous one, and authors should expect to work closely with Journal staff on substantial substantive and technical revisions prior to the article’s final publication.
Expedited Reviews
In limited cases, we can expedite the review of a submitted article if the author is facing strict response deadlines by other journals that have already accepted the article. Please indicate your expedited review request information on your Scholastica manuscript submission.
We will do our best to accommodate authors’ requests for expedition of their submissions, but may request that authors seek extensions to ensure that their manuscripts receive full and appropriate consideration.