Plagiarism & AI Policy

Plagiarism & Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy

Last Updated: 5 March 2026

This Plagiarism and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy establishes the academic integrity standards governing submissions to Inkbound Publishers (“Inkbound”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) through 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 the highest standards of scholarly integrity and ethical publishing. All manuscripts submitted for publication—including monographs, edited volumes, and conference proceedings—must comply with the requirements outlined in this policy.

Failure to comply with these standards may result in revision requests, rejection of submissions, or retraction of published content, depending on the severity of the violation.

1. Academic Integrity and Author Responsibility

Authors submitting manuscripts to Inkbound must ensure that their work represents original scholarly research and writing.

By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm that:

  • the work is original and authored by the submitting authors;

  • all sources are properly cited and acknowledged;

  • the work does not contain plagiarism, data fabrication, or unethical academic practices;

  • necessary permissions have been obtained for any third-party material used.

Inkbound reserves the right to conduct integrity checks on all submissions prior to editorial evaluation.

2. Plagiarism Screening

All submissions undergo an initial screening process using Turnitin.

This screening is conducted before the manuscript proceeds to editorial review or peer evaluation.

The plagiarism report is evaluated by the editorial team to determine whether the manuscript meets acceptable originality standards.

3. Acceptable Similarity Threshold

Inkbound allows a maximum similarity index of 20%, excluding:

  • bibliography or reference lists

  • properly formatted quotations

  • footnotes or endnotes

  • standard academic terminology or commonly used methodological descriptions

If the similarity index exceeds 20%, the editorial office may request that the author revise and rewrite the manuscript to improve originality.

Where similarity levels remain excessive after revision, the manuscript may be rejected without further review.

4. Plagiarism Misconduct

The following practices constitute unacceptable plagiarism and may lead to desk rejection or further editorial action:

  • copying substantial portions of previously published text without proper attribution

  • paraphrasing previously published work without adequate citation

  • submitting work previously published elsewhere without disclosure

  • duplicate submissions to multiple publishers without authorization

  • self-plagiarism involving significant reuse of previously published content

Inkbound may reject submissions where plagiarism is determined to be substantial or intentional.

5. Manipulation of Plagiarism Detection Systems

Attempts to manipulate plagiarism detection systems are considered serious academic misconduct.

Examples include, but are not limited to:

  • inserting copied text formatted in white or invisible font to conceal similarity

  • embedding copied text within images or graphical objects to avoid detection

  • quoting excessively large sections of content without scholarly justification

  • using formatting techniques or technical workarounds designed to deceive plagiarism detection tools

Any such practices intended to circumvent plagiarism detection systems will result in immediate desk rejection of the submission.

Inkbound may also decline future submissions from authors who engage in such conduct.

6. Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy

Inkbound recognizes the increasing use of artificial intelligence tools in academic workflows; however, the publisher maintains strict requirements regarding authorship and scholarly integrity.

Prohibited Use of AI

Fully AI-generated scholarly manuscripts or academic analyses are not permitted.

The intellectual substance of the research—including arguments, interpretations, conclusions, and academic analysis—must be written and developed by human authors.

Submissions found to contain significant AI-generated scholarly content may be subject to:

  • mandatory revision requests, or

  • immediate desk rejection, depending on the extent of the violation.

7. Permitted Use of AI

Limited use of AI tools may be permitted for supportive purposes, including:

  • improving grammar or language clarity

  • correcting stylistic or tonal inconsistencies

  • assisting with structural organization of text

In addition, AI-generated media elements may be used where appropriate, including:

  • illustrations

  • diagrams

  • infographics

  • conceptual visualizations

Authors remain fully responsible for ensuring the accuracy, legality, and originality of any AI-generated media included in their submission.

8. AI Detection Screening

Inkbound evaluates all submitted manuscripts using Turnitin.

If editorial review indicates that substantial portions of the scholarly content appear to be AI-generated, the editorial team may:

  • request that the author revise and rewrite the manuscript using original human-authored content, or

  • reject the manuscript prior to peer review.

Editorial decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis depending on the nature and extent of AI-generated material identified.

9. Editorial Actions and Sanctions

Where plagiarism or unauthorized AI-generated content is identified, Inkbound may take one or more of the following actions:

  • request revision and resubmission

  • issue warnings to the authors

  • reject the submission prior to peer review

  • withdraw manuscripts from consideration

  • retract previously published content if misconduct is discovered post-publication

The appropriate action will be determined by the editorial office based on the severity of the violation.

10. Post-Publication Integrity

If plagiarism or improper AI use is discovered after publication, Inkbound may take corrective action including:

  • issuing corrections or editorial notices

  • publishing expressions of concern

  • retracting the publication where necessary

Such decisions will be guided by recognized academic publishing standards and ethical best practices.

11. Author Acknowledgement

By submitting a manuscript to Inkbound, authors confirm that they:

  • have read and understood this Plagiarism & AI Policy;

  • agree to comply with its requirements;

  • accept that manuscripts may be screened for plagiarism and AI-generated content.

Failure to comply with this policy may result in editorial sanctions as described above.

Contact

For questions regarding this policy, please contact:

Email: editor@inkbound.org