Editorial Policies

Purpose and scope

Jurimetrics: The Journal of Law, Science, and Technology is an international journal concerned with issues in all areas of law, science, and technology including:

• physical, life, and the empirical, social, and behavioral sciences;
• engineering, aerospace, communications, and computers;
• logic, mathematics, statistics, and quantitative methods;
• use of science and technology in law practice, litigation, adjudication, legislation, and court and agency administration;
• legal regulation and policy implications of science and technology.

Published quarterly, Jurimetrics is the oldest and most widely circulated peer-reviewed journal in its field, and proud to be the official journal of the American Bar Association Science & Technology Law Section. Currently, the journal is housed at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law–Arizona State University (ASU Law) and cosponsored by ASU Law’s Center for Law, Science & Innovation (LSI). The Jurimetrics executive board and editorial staff are advised by an LSI Center faculty fellow. The journal provides scholars and researchers with a wealth of thoughtful articles and is frequently cited in opinions of state and federal courts, legal treatises, textbooks, and scholarly articles in a wide range of other journals. These distinctions support Jurimetrics’ claim of being the premier peer-reviewed journal of law, science, and technology.

Categories of papers

• Articles: fully researched studies of general interest. These begin with an abstract of not more than 250 words.
• Developments: articles survey recent legislation or other developments in a field. These articles are predominantly descriptive.
• Reflections: short essays on a narrow and well-defined topic, such as a recent case. They provide authors an opportunity to express opinions or provide perspective without writing an extended and heavily footnoted article.
• SciTech Corner: column that provides a forum for short articles by authors with technical expertise in a given area.
• Notes & Comments: articles prepared by the student editors of Jurimetrics.
• Book Reviews: short essays that inform nonspecialist readers of the contents and importance of recent books.
• Review Essays: longer essays stimulated by recent books.
• Letters to the Editor: very short comments on topics of general interest or on the contents of recent issues of the journal.

Manuscript guidelines

Submission. Space in Jurimetrics is limited. Originality, clarity, civility, and brevity are highly valued. Articles are selected for publication according to editorial assessment of their suitability and reports from referees. Although Jurimetrics welcomes careful analysis or advocacy of policy matters concerning law, science, and technology, publication of content that is defamatory, violates the law, or advocates for partisan politics is prohibited. Unsolicited manuscripts are welcomed for consideration if neither the article nor any part of its essential substance has been or will be published elsewhere before appearing in Jurimetrics. Copies of any closely related manuscripts should be submitted along with the manuscript that is to be considered by Jurimetrics. Unsolicited manuscripts from academics, practitioners, policymakers, and non-ASU law students are welcome.

Manuscripts may be submitted by electronic mail to jurimetrics@asu.edu, preferably in Microsoft Word format. Alternatively, authors with access to Scholastica may submit manuscripts using that platform. Footnotes rather than endnotes should be used. Authors should provide contact information including mailing address, e-mail address, and telephone number.

Processing. All manuscripts are acknowledged shortly after receipt, but not all are sent for review. Contributors are encouraged to suggest the names of possible reviewers, and requests for exclusion of specific reviewers are usually honored. Once a manuscript is accepted for publication, authors are asked to make modifications suggested by referees or the editor. Revised manuscripts are edited for style, and proofs are returned to the authors. Authors receive one complimentary print issue and an electronic copy of their contribution. 

Expedited Review. Authors requesting expedited review must provide the names of the journals that have accepted the manuscript and their deadlines. If the peer-review process cannot be completed to meet these deadlines, authors will be advised of this fact. Please note that our ability to expedite reviews can be constrained by the peer-review process. If we have insufficient time to evaluate an article, we will be forced to reject it without further review.

Disclosure of Interests. Authors should disclose at the time of submission any financial, consulting, or other arrangement they may have with a company or organization whose products or interests figure prominently in the submitted manuscript. This information will be held in confidence while the paper is under review and will not influence the editorial decision. If the paper is accepted for publication, the editor will discuss with the authors the manner in which such information will be disclosed to the reader.*

*Disclaimer statement: The materials published in this journal do not necessarily represent the views or actions of the American Bar Association, unless approved by the House of Delegates or the Board of Governors. They do not necessarily represent the views of the Section, unless first approved by the Section or its Council. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Arizona State University or the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law.

Preparation of Manuscripts

Manuscripts should conform to The Redbook: A Manual on Legal Style or to The Chicago Manual of Style, and to the most recent edition of The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation—currently the 21st edition. Brief acknowledgments that provide the author’s institutional affiliation and mailing address may be included in an initial footnote.