Author Guidelines

These Author Guidelines provide practical instructions for preparing and submitting manuscripts to Transformative Law Review. Authors are expected to follow the journal template, prepare a manuscript with clear scholarly contribution, complete all required metadata, and comply with the journal’s ethical and editorial standards before submitting through the Online Journal System (OJS).

Related Journal Policies:

Authors are encouraged to read the journal’s Focus and Scope, Publication Ethics, Generative AI Policy, Peer Review Process, Copyright Notice, and Plagiarism Screening Policy before submitting a manuscript.

1. General Submission Requirements

The manuscript must be original and must not have been previously published, either in full or in part.
The manuscript must not be under consideration or review by another journal at the same time.
The manuscript must not be a mere compilation, translation, duplication, or republication of previously published material.
The manuscript must be relevant to the journal’s focus and scope in Islamic, social, religious, humanities, and related multidisciplinary studies.
The manuscript must present a clear scholarly contribution through empirical research, conceptual analysis, critical review, textual study, field-based study, comparative study, interdisciplinary study, or another relevant academic approach.

2. Manuscript Length, Title, Abstract, Keywords, and Language Policy

Authors must ensure that the manuscript title, abstract, keywords, and article content clearly reflect the scholarly quality, originality, and contribution of the article. Manuscripts may be submitted in Bahasa Indonesia or English. Regardless of the language of the manuscript, the English title, abstract, keywords, and metadata must be provided at the time of submission.

Technical and Scholarly Requirements

Manuscript Length	The manuscript should normally contain approximately 5,000–6,000 words, excluding references, tables, figures, appendices, and supplementary materials. Shorter or longer manuscripts may be considered if they demonstrate strong scholarly quality, originality, and relevance to the journal’s focus and scope.
Article Title	The title should be concise, specific, informative, and academically relevant. It should normally not exceed 20 words. The title must clearly reflect the main topic, object of study, and scholarly focus of the article. Authors should avoid overly general titles, unclear abbreviations, excessive length, and promotional or non-academic wording.
English Title	Every manuscript must include an English title. The English title should be accurate, grammatically correct, and equivalent in meaning to the title in the manuscript’s main language.
Abstract	The abstract must be written in clear academic English and should normally contain 150–250 words. It should be written in one paragraph and must summarize the research background or gap, objective, method, main findings, and the article’s original scholarly contribution. The abstract should not contain citations, footnotes, tables, figures, undefined abbreviations, or overly general statements.
Keywords	Authors must provide 4–6 keywords in English. Keywords should be specific, searchable, and representative of the article’s main concepts, object of study, method, and field. Authors should avoid overly broad keywords such as “Islam,” “education,” or “society” unless they are combined with more specific terms.
Language and Translation Policy	Manuscripts may be submitted in Bahasa Indonesia or English. For manuscripts written in Bahasa Indonesia, authors must provide an English title, abstract, keywords, and metadata at the time of submission. If the manuscript passes the substantive review stage, the editorial team may request the author to prepare an English version or professional translation before publication.

3. Manuscript Format and Template

Authors must prepare the manuscript using the official journal template available here.
For manuscripts written in Bahasa Indonesia, authors must follow the Pedoman Bahasa Indonesia yang Disempurnakan, available here.
For manuscripts written in Bahasa Indonesia that contain Arabic terms, names, phrases, titles of classical works, Qur’anic expressions, Hadith phrases, or other Arabic-based terminology, authors may follow the Pedoman Transliterasi Arab-Latin based on the Joint Decree of the Minister of Religious Affairs and the Minister of Education and Culture of the Republic of Indonesia, Number 158 of 1987 and Number 0543b/U/1987, available here.
The manuscript file must be submitted in Microsoft Word format.

Font and Typography:

The manuscript title, author information, manuscript history, abstract/abstrak, and keywords/kata kunci should use Calibri Light font. The main body of the manuscript, from Introduction to References, is recommended to use Calibri Light font, 12 pt, single spacing, and justified alignment. However, the use of Times New Roman for the main body, from Introduction to References, may still be tolerated as long as the text remains clear, consistent, and readable.

4. Required Structure of Research Articles

Research articles submitted to Transformative Law Review should generally consist of Introduction, Method, Results and Discussion, Conclusion, and References. Each section must be written clearly and must demonstrate the scholarly quality, originality, and contribution of the article.

Structure of Research Articles

Introduction	The introduction should present the research background, academic context, problem statement, brief review of previous studies, research gap, research question or objective, novelty, and contribution of the article. It should explain why the topic is important, what has been discussed in previous scholarship, what remains insufficiently addressed, and how the article contributes to the field.
Method	The method section should clearly describe the research design, approach, data sources, object of study, data collection techniques, data analysis methods, and ethical considerations where applicable. Manuscripts may employ various academic approaches, including textual analysis, library research, historical analysis, hermeneutical analysis, empirical fieldwork, qualitative research, comparative study, interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary approaches, mixed methods, or critical review of recent academic publications. The method must be appropriate to the article type and research objective and sufficiently clear to allow scholarly evaluation of the study.
Results and Discussion	This section should present the main findings clearly and analytically. The findings must be supported by relevant data, textual evidence, interview results, field observations, documents, tables, figures, or other sources according to the research design. The discussion should interpret the findings, relate them to previous studies or theories, explain their implications, and show the article’s originality and scholarly contribution. This section should not merely describe data but should provide critical analysis.
Conclusion	The conclusion should answer the research question, summarize the main findings, state the article’s contribution, acknowledge limitations where relevant, and suggest possible directions for future research. The conclusion should not simply repeat the abstract or introduction and should not introduce new data or new arguments.
References	References must follow Chicago Manual of Style 17th Edition (Full Note) and must be accurate, relevant, and drawn primarily from credible scholarly sources such as journal articles, academic books, book chapters, conference proceedings, and authoritative primary sources. Authors are encouraged to use recent references where appropriate and to avoid excessive self-citation, irrelevant citation, and citation manipulation.

5. Structure of Critical Review and Conceptual Articles

Critical review and conceptual articles should demonstrate analytical depth, originality, and engagement with relevant scholarly debates. Such manuscripts should generally follow the structure below:

Structure of Critical Review and Conceptual Articles

Introduction	The introduction should present the topic, reviewed work, concept, or debate, explain its scholarly relevance, identify the problem or gap, and state the objective and contribution of the article.
Summary or Conceptual Background	This section should present the main ideas, arguments, theoretical framework, or structure of the work or concept being reviewed. It should be descriptive but concise and should prepare the ground for critical analysis.
Critical Analysis	The critical analysis should provide a balanced evaluation of strengths, weaknesses, originality, limitations, methodology, theoretical framework, and contribution. Arguments must be supported by relevant scholarly references.
Conclusion	The conclusion should synthesize the discussion, state the article’s contribution, and explain its relevance to Islamic, social, religious, humanities, or related multidisciplinary studies.

6. References and In-Text Citation

Manuscripts must use Chicago Manual of Style 17th Edition (Full Note) for both in-text citation and the reference list. In-text citation should use footnotes for regular bibliographic citation.

Examples of In-Text Citation (in footnote form):

Full Notes:
- ^1. Charles Yu, Interior Chinatown (Pantheon Books, 2020), 45.
- ^2. Amy J. Binder and Jeffrey L. Kidder, The Channels of Student Activism: How the Left and Right Are Winning (and Losing) in Campus Politics Today (University of Chicago Press, 2022), 117–18.
- ^3. Hyeyoung Kwon, “Inclusion Work: Children of Immigrants Claiming Membership in Everyday Life,” American Journal of Sociology 127, no. 6 (2022): 1842–43, https://doi.org/10.1086/720277.
- ^4. Emily L. Dittmar and Douglas W. Schemske, “Temporal Variation in Selection Influences Microgeographic Local Adaptation,” American Naturalist 202, no. 4 (2023): 480, https://doi.org/10.1086/725865.
Shortened Notes:
- ^5. Yu, Interior Chinatown, 48.
- ^6. Binder and Kidder, Channels of Student Activism, 125.
- ^7. Kwon, “Inclusion Work,” 1851.
- ^8. Dittmar and Schemske, “Temporal Variation,” 480.

Footnotes can also be used for additional explanatory notes, not only for regular bibliographic citation.
References must be accurate, relevant, and drawn primarily from credible scholarly sources.
The manuscript should normally include at least 20 scholarly references, depending on the article type and research field.
Authors are encouraged to use recent and relevant references where appropriate, especially journal articles, academic books, book chapters, conference proceedings, and authoritative primary sources.
Authors are encouraged to use reference management software such as Mendeley, Zotero, or EndNote to ensure consistency with Chicago Manual of Style 17th Edition (Full Note).
Citation manipulation, excessive self-citation, irrelevant citation, and coercive citation are not permitted.
All references cited in the text must appear in the reference list, and all entries in the reference list must be cited in the text.

7. Citation of Religious and Classical Texts

For manuscripts that cite Qur’anic verses, Hadith texts, classical Islamic works, or other religious and classical texts, authors should avoid writing the full original text in Arabic or other non-Latin scripts within the body of the manuscript, unless the original wording is essential to the analysis. Authors may provide translations of the relevant passages, followed by clear references. Specific original phrases may be quoted only when directly analyzed and should be accompanied by transliteration and translation where necessary.

8. Required Author Declarations

Authors should include relevant declarations in the manuscript where applicable. These declarations may include originality, conflict of interest, funding, data availability, ethical approval, and use of Generative Artificial Intelligence.

Recommended statements:

Originality: This manuscript is original and has not been published or submitted elsewhere.

Conflict of Interest: The author(s) declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this article.

Funding: This research received no external funding. / This research was funded by [name of funder], grant number [if applicable].

Data Availability: The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. / Data are available in [repository name/link], where applicable.

Ethical Approval: This study received ethical approval from [name of institution/committee], approval number [number], on [date]. / Ethical approval was not required for this study because [brief explanation].

GenAI Disclosure: During the preparation of this manuscript, the author(s) used [name of GenAI tool] for [specific purpose]. The author(s) have reviewed, edited, and verified all outputs and take full responsibility for the content of the manuscript. / The author(s) did not use Generative Artificial Intelligence tools in the preparation of this manuscript.

Authors must comply with the journal’s Generative AI Policy. GenAI tools, chatbots, or similar technologies cannot be listed as authors or co-authors.

9. Plagiarism and Similarity Screening

All submitted manuscripts will be checked for similarity using Turnitin or other similarity detection tools. The similarity index must not exceed 15%. Manuscripts exceeding this threshold may be returned for revision or rejected, depending on the nature and severity of similarity.

Plagiarism, self-plagiarism, duplicate publication, text recycling without proper citation, data fabrication, data falsification, and citation manipulation are considered forms of publication malpractice and will be handled according to the journal’s Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement.

10. Submission Procedure through OJS

All manuscripts must be submitted through the journal’s OJS submission system. Authors should not submit manuscripts by email unless requested by the editorial office for technical reasons.

Register as an author or reviewer on the Register page.
Log in as an author and click New Submission.
Under Start, select the appropriate journal section and complete all required submission checklists.
In Upload Submission, upload the manuscript in Microsoft Word format using the journal template.
In Enter Metadata, complete all author names, affiliations, countries, email addresses, title, abstract, keywords, and references.
In Upload Supplementary Files, authors may upload supporting documents where applicable.
In Confirmation, verify all information and click Finish Submission.
If technical difficulties occur, please contact the Editorial Team at pakungwati-institute@outlook.com.

11. Required Documents before Submission

Manuscript file in Microsoft Word format following the official journal template.
Complete author metadata, including affiliation, country, email address, and preferably ORCID ID.
English title, abstract, and keywords.
Required declarations, including originality, conflict of interest, funding, data availability, ethical approval, and GenAI disclosure where applicable.
Curriculum Vitae form for the corresponding author, available here.

12. Final Author Declaration

By submitting a manuscript to Transformative Law Review, authors confirm that the manuscript is original, has not been published elsewhere, is not under consideration by another journal, complies with the journal’s ethical standards, and has been approved by all listed authors. Authors also agree to follow the journal’s policies on publication ethics, peer review, copyright and licensing, plagiarism screening, and the responsible use of Generative Artificial Intelligence.