Mission, Focus and Scope

Last updated: 04/30/2026

Mission
Pensar – Journal of Legal Sciences aims to disseminate critical, current, and socially relevant legal knowledge based on original research that addresses contemporary challenges in Brazilian and international society. Affiliated with the University of Fortaleza (UNIFOR), under the editorial governance of the Higher Editorial Council (Conselho Superior de Editoração — CSE), a body of the Vice-Rectorate for Research (Vice-Reitoria de Pesquisa — VRP), the journal seeks to foster academic debate and contribute to institutional improvement through scientific output, particularly concerning the formulation, implementation, and evaluation of public policies.

Editorial focus
The journal gives priority to research that:

• Is theoretical-empirical in nature and contributes directly to the analysis of concrete legal problems
• Provides input for the formulation, implementation, or evaluation of public policies
• Establishes an interface with other fields of knowledge, such as political science, public administration, sociology, economics, or technology
• Applies diverse methodologies, including empirical, comparative, qualitative, quantitative, or mixed approaches
• Promotes the use of law as a tool for institutional and social transformation

Thematic Scope

Since 2025, the journal’s editorial line is structured into four thematic axes: (1) Law, Democracy and Social Justice; (2) Constitution, Institutions and Democracy in Brazil; (3) Law, Technology and Society in Transformation; and (4) International Article. These axes correspond to consolidated research areas, focused on critical and applied analysis of Law, encompassing topics such as fundamental rights, constitutional jurisdiction, organization of powers, public policies, technological transformations and their legal implications, among others.

According to the CNPq classification, the thematic coverage of the journal is as follows:

Broad Field: Applied Social Sciences (6.00.00.00-7)
Field: Law (6.01.00.00-9)
Subfields: Constitutional Law, Legal Theory, Administrative Law, Political and Economic Law, Civil and Commercial Law, among others, with secondary interfaces with Sociology and Computer Science, depending on the approach of the articles.

Theoretical contributions
Purely theoretical articles may be accepted, provided they demonstrate a high level of analytical rigor, originality, and scientific relevance. However, this type of contribution will not be prioritized in the editorial workflow, in light of the journal’s commitment to practical applicability and the social usefulness of academic research.

Commitment to open science
The journal adopts editorial practices aligned with the principles of open science, emphasizing transparency, reproducibility, and public utility of research. Authors are encouraged to submit, whenever applicable, the following types of supplementary materials:

• Jurisprudential references
• Normative frameworks
• Empirical tables
• Systematic reviews
• Interview scripts
• Data collection instruments
• Scripts or source codes used in the research
• Other relevant documents