Publication ethics
Last update: 02/05/2026
Pensar – Journal of Legal Sciences adopts rigorous ethical standards in the editorial process, based on national and international best practices applicable to scientific publishing. The journal operates in compliance with principles of scientific integrity, impartiality, confidentiality, transparency, editorial responsibility, and respect for copyright.
The journal's actions observe, among other references:
- The guidelines of COPE — Committee on Publication Ethics;
- The recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE);
- The Scientific Integrity Policy of the University of Fortaleza Higher Council of Publishing;
- CNPq Ordinance No. 2,664, of March 6, 2026, which establishes the Scientific Integrity Policy.
Journal commitments
Pensar commits to:
- Ensure that editorial decisions are made based on the academic, scientific, and editorial merit of manuscripts;
- Guarantee a peer review process guided by impartiality, secrecy, and respect for editorial best practices;
- Prevent, identify, and address situations of plagiarism, self-plagiarism, duplicate publication, citation manipulation, undisclosed conflicts of interest, fabrication or falsification of data, undisclosed use of Artificial Intelligence, and other forms of scientific misconduct;
- Protect the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and information shared during the editorial process;
- Adopt appropriate editorial measures in cases of relevant error, ethical irregularity, or need for post-publication correction.
Editorial team commitments
The editorial team commits to:
- Conduct the editorial process with independence, objectivity, courtesy, and responsibility;
- Select qualified reviewers without conflicts of interest;
- Preserve the evaluation model adopted by the journal and the confidentiality of submitted information;
- Guide authors and reviewers on the ethical requirements applicable to the editorial process;
- Use, when applicable, COPE flowcharts and guidelines for analysis and handling of ethical cases.
Reference COPE flowcharts:
- How to spot authorship problems;
- Plagiarism in a submitted manuscript;
- Undisclosed conflict of interest in a submitted manuscript.
Author commitments
By submitting manuscripts to Pensar, authors declare that:
- The submitted work is original and respects the ethical standards of research and scientific publication;
- All sources used were properly cited and referenced;
- Authorship was attributed only to those who effectively made relevant contributions to the work, in accordance with the CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy);
- There was no simultaneous submission of the same manuscript to another journal, except in cases expressly allowed and disclosed;
- Any conflicts of interest and funding sources have been duly declared;
- The use of Artificial Intelligence has been explicitly declared, in accordance with the specific policy;
- Any relevant errors identified after publication will be promptly communicated to the journal.
Detailed rules on author duties can be found on the Submission of Manuscripts page.
Reviewer commitments
Reviewers must:
- Act with impartiality, objectivity, courtesy, and technical-scientific rigor;
- Maintain absolute confidentiality regarding manuscripts received for evaluation;
- Inform the editorial team of any conflict of interest, impediment, or suspicion of scientific misconduct identified in the manuscript;
- Refrain from using, for personal benefit or that of third parties, information obtained during the evaluation process;
- Not submit the manuscript or identifiable excerpts to generative AI tools, due to the confidentiality of the editorial process.
The Manuscript Evaluation Criteria detail the specific guidelines for reviewers.
Plagiarism, similarity, and content integrity
The journal adopts mechanisms for control and prevention of undue similarity. All submitted manuscripts undergo textual similarity verification, as detailed in the specific Similarity Verification policy.
Pensar uses Crossref Similarity Check, powered by iThenticate, to support textual similarity verification in the editorial process.
The identification of similarity does not, by itself, imply ethical irregularity. Editorial analysis will consider the context of the manuscript, the presence of duly indicated citations, the type of textual reuse, and the adequacy to the journal's standards.
Undisclosed use of generative Artificial Intelligence also constitutes an ethical breach, as detailed in the Use of Artificial Intelligence policy.
Research with humans, animals, and identifiable data
When applicable, manuscripts must observe the ethical regulations relevant to research with humans, animals, and identifiable data:
- Law No. 14,874, of May 28, 2024 — establishes the National System of Ethics in Research with Human Beings;
- CNS Resolution No. 466, of December 12, 2012 — guidelines and regulatory norms for research involving human subjects;
- CNS Resolution No. 510, of April 7, 2016 — research in Human and Social Sciences;
- Law No. 11,794, of October 8, 2008 (Arouca Law) — scientific use of animals;
- Law No. 13,709, of August 14, 2018 (LGPD) — personal data protection.
The journal may request, at any time, documentation proving ethical approval or additional clarifications, when applicable.
Post-publication corrections and measures
When relevant errors, substantial inconsistencies, or indications of ethical irregularity are identified in published work, the journal may adopt the appropriate editorial measures, including correction, erratum, editorial statement, retraction, or other appropriate measures, depending on the severity of the case.
The specific rules on these hypotheses can be found on the Retraction, Correction, and Erratum page.
Final provisions
Omitted cases will be analyzed by the editorial team of Pensar – Journal of Legal Sciences, in light of the journal's policies, COPE guidelines, UNIFOR institutional parameters, and applicable scientific integrity regulations.
