Submissions

Author Guidelines

Authors are invited to make a submission to this journal. All submissions will be assessed by an editor to determine whether they meet the aims and scope of this journal. Those considered to be a good fit will be sent for peer review before determining whether they will be accepted or rejected.

Before making a submission, authors are responsible for obtaining permission to publish any material included with the submission, such as photos, documents and datasets. All authors identified on the submission must consent to be identified as an author. Where appropriate, research should be approved by an appropriate ethics committee in accordance with the legal requirements of the study's country.

An editor may desk reject a submission if it does not meet minimum standards of quality. Before submitting, please ensure that the study design and research argument are structured and articulated properly. The title should be concise and the abstract should be able to stand on its own. This will increase the likelihood of reviewers agreeing to review the paper. When you're satisfied that your submission meets this standard, please follow the checklist below to prepare your submission.

General Guidelines to Authors

PART I – GENERAL

1. Nomenclature

     The Guidelines shall be called Mekelle University Law Journal General Author’s Guidelines. 

2.  Objective

     The Journal aims to achieve the following objectives:

        a) Serves as blueprint for authors, reviewers and editors and ensure that all manuscripts    follow a consistent format and style

  a) To provide clear instructions on structure, citations, language, and presentation.   

  b) To enhance the quality and consistency of published articles that meet academic and editorial standards.

PART II- GENERAL GUIDELINES TO AUTHORS 

3. Language of Publication

3.1. The Journal accepts and publishes contributions written in English or Amharic primarily and any of the local languages. When a contributor provides a piece written in a local language she/he shall provide an abstract in English/Amharic. 

3.2. Articles shall contain an abstract of not more than 300 words, and a maximum of five key terms. Submissions in local language require a summary of the article or comment in about 5000 words.

4. Frequency of Publication

The Journal shall be published at least once a year. The timeline for submission is from July 1^st to September 30^th. The journal must be published in March of every academic year. However, special issues can be published as necessary.

5. Organization of Submissions

a) Articles shall contain a title, abstract, key words, text (body), conclusion, and footnotes.

b) Case comments and briefs shall mention the name of the case, case number, name of the court, date and other appropriate references.

c) Book reviews as well, shall indicate the name of the author, title, name of publisher and date of publication.

d)  Research output, in addition to the requirements for articles shall include the research methodologies 

6. Length and Format                                         

 6.1 Length:

a) Contributions articles and research shall not be more than 10,000 words including footnotes. However, the editorial committee may accept articles exceeding the word limit in special circumstance on justifiable grounds such as but not limited to condensing or splitting it adversely affects the quality and depth of the academic work.

b) Case comments and book reviews shall not exceed 5000 words subject to exceptions that may be allowed based on theme and content.

c) Case brief shall not exceed three pages 

6.2 Format: The following format shall be followed. 

• Abstract: single space, font 12, italics, indented and not more than a page
• Key words: font-12, New Times Romans, Maximum limit- 8 words and single words
• Section titles, Introduction and Conclusion shall be in Font Size 14, bold, and sub-sections (1.1, 1.2, etc) shall be in Font Size 12 bold.  Footnotes shall be consecutive, and in superscript.
• Body: space-1.5, font-12, New Times Romans, Foot notes: font 10, and single space;
• Submissions in Amharic or other local languages shall be in Power Geez Unicode 1 or Visual Geez, Font Size 11 (and Font Size 9 for footnotes). 

6.3. Footnotes are expected to be minimized by using in-text indications of citations and legal provisions where appropriate. Cited references shall be stated at the end of the draft article. 

7. Quality and Manner of Submission 

   7.1. All contributions shall be original works of the author(s), which have not been published elsewhere. The author(s) shall confirm this fact by signing a statement of declaration. 

    7.2. All contributors shall submit their work in soft copy in two separate Microsoft word documents, one with the author’s name, and the other one without author’s details. The document with the author’s name shall contain the author's title, institutional affiliations, academic profile and contact addresses (e-mail and mobile phone). 

   7.3. Contributions are required to be well referenced acknowledging all sources used in accordance with the rules of citation attached herewith.

   7.4. The submission of draft articles shall be sent to the Editor-in-Chief or the Managing Editor.

PART III- Rules of Citation

8. General rules of citation 

The Mekele University Law Journal follows The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation (21st ed. 2020) for citation form and the Chicago Manual of Style (17^th ed. 2017) for stylistic matters not addressed by The Bluebook. Reference to Ethiopian Authors(s), local laws and cases are presented as follows.

8.1. Books

The first reference to a book shall contain the following information in the following order:

Author’s name; title of the book; edition number (if it has more than one edition) and year of publication in parenthesis; number of the volume, if any; and page number referred to.

l  Ethiopian names should be spelled out in full.

8.2 Journal Articles

Author, Title of Article, Volume Journal Abbreviation First Page, Pinpoint Page (Year).

Cass R. Sunstein, On the Expressive Function of Law, 144 U. Pa. L. Rev. 2021, 2030 (1996).

8. 3. Chapter in an Edited Book

Author, Title of Chapter, in Book Title First Page of Chapter, Pinpoint Page (Editor's Name ed., Year).

Assefa Fiseha, Federalism and Diversity, in Ethiopian Constitutional Law 85, 92 (Christophe Van der Beken ed., 2017).

8.4. Local laws

The first reference to legislation should be cited using the full title of the legislation as found in the official Gazette it promulgates on top of the specific provision referred to.

l  E.g. Civil Code of the Empire of Ethiopia, 1960, Art. 2000 Proc. No.165, Neg. Gaz. Year 19, No.2

8.5 Local cases

Case name; file number; name of the court and its jurisdiction including the country, where the decision is a foreign judgment (in parentheses), date of decision; name of the source if the case is published and page where specific reference might be found.

l  Tefera Anteneh v Gemechu Megerssa, (Federal Supreme Court Cassation Division, December 21, 2002), Federal Supreme Court Cassation Division, vol.4, p.55

l  Adugna Baysa v Ghana Embassy, (Civil File No. 09322, Arada Federal First Instance Court, June 08, 2005),(unpublished)

8.6  Interviews

Interview with Name, Position, Institution, in Place (Month Day, Year).

Interview with Abebe Mulatu, Judge, Federal Supreme Court, in Addis Ababa, Eth. (Jan. 15, 2024).

8.7 Newspaper Articles

Author, Title, Newspaper Name, Month Day, Year, at Page.

Samuel Getachew, Reforming Ethiopia's Justice System, Addis Standard, May 12, 2024, at 5.

For online newspapers:

Author, Title, Newspaper Name (Month Day, Year), URL.

8.8. Newsletters

Author, Title, Newsletter Name, Month Year, at Page.

Ethiopian Human Rights Commission, Annual Human Rights Update, EHRC Newsletter, Mar. 2023, at 12.

8.9  Foreign Case Law

Case Name, Volume Reporter First Page, Pinpoint Page (Court Year).

Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483, 495 (1954).

United States v. Jones, 565 F.3d 1234, 1240 (9th Cir. 2009).

8.10 Constitutions

Constitution Name art. Article Number,  Fed.; Negarit Gazeta, art, Number (Year).

Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Fed. Negarit Gazeta,  art. 39,  1 (1995).

8.11 Proclamations

Title Proclamation No. ___/Year, Fed. Negarit Gazeta, Year, No. ___.

Federal Courts Proclamation No. 1234/2021, Fed. Negarit Gazeta, 27th Year, No. 45.

8.12. Regulations

Title Council of Ministers Regulation No. ___/Year.

Investment Incentives Regulation No. 517/2022.

8.13. Directives

Issuing Authority, Directive No. ___/Year.

National Bank of Ethiopia, Directive No. FXD/88/2023.

8.14 International Treaties

Treaty Name art. Article Number, Date, Treaty Source.

African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights art. 7, June 27, 1981, 1520 U.N.T.S. 217.

8.15  Websites

Author, Title, Website Name (Date), URL.

Ethiopian Investment Commission, Investment Opportunities in Ethiopia (Jan. 10, 2025), https://www.investethiopia.gov.et.

8.16  Short Forms

Id.

Id. at 125.

Supra (Books and Articles Only)

Chemerinsky, supra note 12, at 214.

Cases

Brown, 347 U.S. at 495.

PART-IV: MISCELANEOUS

9. Amendment

    The Author’s guidelines may be amended by the Editorial Committee in consultation with the School Council.

10. Effective Date

    The Author’s guidelines come into effect upon approval by the school council.