Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Last update: 02/05/2026

Pensar – Journal of Legal Sciences adopts as a fundamental principle that academic authorship is exclusively human. Generative Artificial Intelligence tools (such as ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, among others) cannot, under any circumstances, be recognized as authors or co-authors of manuscripts.

The use of AI must always be transparent, declared, justified, and compatible with:

The journal recognizes that AI tools may be used as support in certain stages of academic and editorial production, provided that such use does not compromise scientific integrity, intellectual originality, the confidentiality of the editorial process, or human responsibility for the produced content.

1. Guidelines for authors

Authorship is human and non-transferable. No AI system may be listed as author or co-author.

The use of AI tools, when applicable, must be expressly declared by the author(s) in the Introduction of the manuscript and in the Submission Form, indicating:

  • Name of the tool used;
  • Purpose of use (e.g., translation, language editing, support for textual organization);
  • Stage of the work in which it was employed.

Authors remain fully responsible for the content submitted, its originality, the accuracy of the data, the factual and legal correctness of the information presented, and the respect for third-party rights, even when supported by AI.

Template for declaration in the Introduction

Since 2026, all submissions to Pensar must include, in the manuscript's Introduction, a dedicated paragraph with the declaration on the use (or non-use) of AI. Suggested template:

"The authors declare that they used the [tool name] tool for [specific purpose: e.g., language editing, translation, textual organization support] at the [stage: e.g., drafting, translation into English, final revision] stage. Responsibility for the final content, the accuracy of the information presented, and the originality of the text is fully human."

Or, alternatively: "The authors declare that they did not use generative Artificial Intelligence tools at any stage in the production of this manuscript."

It is forbidden to

  • Present AI-generated content as if it were original human intellectual production, without proper declaration;
  • Use AI to fabricate data, references, decisions, citations, case law, transcripts, or non-existent documents;
  • Conceal relevant use of AI when it has interfered with the writing, structure, translation, substantial revision, or organization of content.

Undisclosed use of AI, when relevant, constitutes a serious ethical breach and may result in rejection, archiving, retraction, or communication to the authors' institutions, depending on the severity of the case. Submitted manuscripts undergo similarity verification via Crossref Similarity Check / iThenticate, an instrument that may contribute to identifying undeclared use.

2. Guidelines for editors

Editors must oversee the detection and verification of undeclared AI use in manuscripts, employing appropriate institutional means when necessary.

The use of AI by editors is only admitted in auxiliary, technical, or administrative tasks, such as:

  • Linguistic support;
  • Formal standardization;
  • Triage compatible with the security of the editorial process.

No manuscript may be shared in whole or substantially on AI platforms that compromise the confidentiality, anonymity, editorial secrecy, or intellectual property of submitted content.

The editorial decision is always human and cannot be delegated to AI.

3. Guidelines for reviewers

Reviewers must prepare their reviews autonomously, with substantiated and personal grounds, and may not fully delegate their function to AI systems.

It is forbidden to insert manuscripts, identifiable excerpts, sensitive data, or confidential content into AI platforms that may compromise the secrecy, the anonymization of the process, or the protection of the content under review.

The occasional use of AI as merely accessory support that does not compromise secrecy, when admitted by institutional policy, must be informed to the responsible editor.

Reviewers must observe whether the manuscript correctly declares the use of AI and, in case of suspicion of undeclared use, communicate the fact to the responsible editor.

4. Guidelines for the technical and editorial team

The technical and editorial team may use AI in administrative and operational functions, such as:

  • Translation of communications;
  • Metadata organization;
  • Textual standardization.

Such use is admitted provided that it does not compromise the autonomy of editorial decisions or the confidentiality of the process.

The journal will not use AI to automatically alter, summarize, translate, or reinterpret scientific articles without human editorial supervision and without compliance with applicable institutional policies.

5. Non-compliance with the AI policy

Non-compliance with this policy may result in:

  • Request for clarification;
  • Suspension of editorial processing;
  • Rejection of the submission;
  • Archiving;
  • Correction or retraction;
  • Communication to the affiliated institution and to the funding agency, when applicable.

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