Author Responsibilities & Authorship Policy

Last Updated: 5 March 2026

This Author Responsibilities and Authorship Policy establishes the standards governing authorship and author conduct for scholarly works submitted to Inkbound Publishers (“Inkbound”, “we”, “us”, or “our”), accessible at https://inkbound.org (the “Website”).

Inkbound Publishers was previously known as The Law Brigade (Book) Publisher, and the current publishing platform continues the academic publishing activities formerly carried out under that name. References to “Inkbound”, “we”, “us”, or “our” in this policy refer to the publisher operating the Website and its associated publishing services.

Inkbound is committed to maintaining transparency, accountability, and fairness in scholarly publishing. Authorship should accurately reflect the individuals who have made significant intellectual contributions to the research and writing of a manuscript.

The authorship standards described in this policy are informed by internationally recognized guidance developed by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors and the Committee on Publication Ethics.

1. Authorship Criteria

Individuals listed as authors must have made substantial intellectual contributions to the work.

Authorship generally requires that contributors meet all of the following criteria:

Substantial contribution to the conception, design, analysis, interpretation, or development of the scholarly work.
Participation in drafting the manuscript or critically revising it for important intellectual content.
Approval of the final version of the manuscript prior to submission and publication.
Agreement to be accountable for the accuracy and integrity of the work and to address questions related to the research if they arise.

Individuals who meet these criteria should be listed as authors.

2. Contributors Who Do Not Qualify for Authorship

Individuals who contributed to the work but do not meet the criteria for authorship should be acknowledged appropriately rather than listed as authors.

Examples may include:

technical assistance
language editing or proofreading
administrative support
funding acquisition without intellectual contribution
general supervision of a research group

Such contributions may be recognized in the Acknowledgements section of the manuscript where appropriate.

3. Responsibilities of the Corresponding Author

Each submission must designate a corresponding author who acts as the primary contact between the authors and Inkbound during the submission, review, and publication process.

The corresponding author is responsible for:

ensuring that all listed authors meet the authorship criteria;
confirming that all authors approve the submitted manuscript and any subsequent revisions;
coordinating communication between the editorial office and all co-authors;
ensuring that all required documentation, disclosures, and permissions are provided.

The corresponding author also serves as the primary point of contact for post-publication inquiries.

4. Author Contribution Transparency

Where appropriate, authors may be requested to clarify individual contributions to the manuscript.

This may include contributions related to:

conceptualization or research design
data collection or analysis
manuscript writing or editing
visualization or methodological development

Clear identification of contributions promotes transparency and helps prevent authorship disputes.

5. Changes to Authorship

Any changes to the author list after submission—including additions, removals, or changes in author order—must be approved by all listed authors.

Requests for authorship changes must be submitted to the editorial office with written confirmation from all affected authors.

Inkbound may decline requests for authorship changes where appropriate documentation or consensus cannot be established.

Authorship changes are generally not permitted after publication except in exceptional circumstances.

6. Prohibited Authorship Practices

The following authorship practices are considered unethical and are not permitted:

Guest or Honorary Authorship

Listing individuals as authors who did not make significant scholarly contributions.

Ghost Authorship

Excluding individuals who made substantial intellectual contributions from the author list.

Gift Authorship

Granting authorship as a favor or recognition without meaningful involvement in the work.

Inkbound reserves the right to investigate suspected authorship misconduct and may reject or retract manuscripts where violations occur.

7. Responsibility for Content

All authors share responsibility for the accuracy and integrity of the manuscript.

Authors must ensure that:

the research and analysis presented are accurate and transparent;
appropriate citations and references are included;
all necessary permissions have been obtained for third-party materials;
the manuscript complies with Inkbound’s Plagiarism and AI Policy and other editorial policies.

If errors are identified after publication, authors are expected to cooperate with the editorial office in issuing corrections where necessary.

8. Conflict of Interest Disclosure

Authors must disclose any financial, institutional, or personal relationships that could influence the research or its interpretation.

Examples may include:

research funding from organizations with an interest in the outcomes
employment or consulting relationships
intellectual property interests related to the research

Disclosure of conflicts of interest promotes transparency and allows readers to evaluate potential biases.

9. Ethical Compliance for Research

Where applicable, authors must ensure that research involving human participants, animals, or sensitive data complies with relevant ethical guidelines and institutional regulations.

Where required, authors should provide information regarding ethics committee approvals or informed consent procedures.

10. Authorship Disputes

Inkbound does not adjudicate disputes regarding authorship contributions directly.

In cases where authorship disputes arise, the authors’ affiliated institutions or research organizations may be asked to investigate the matter.

Publication decisions may be suspended until such disputes are resolved.

11. Sanctions for Misconduct

If authorship misconduct or ethical violations are identified, Inkbound may take appropriate editorial actions, including:

rejection of the manuscript
withdrawal of the submission from consideration
publication of corrections or editorial notices
retraction of published works

Such actions will be undertaken in accordance with recognized ethical publishing standards and best practices recommended by the Committee on Publication Ethics.

Contact

Questions regarding authorship policies or author responsibilities may be directed to:

Email: editor@inkbound.org