About the Journal

1. FOCUS AND SCOPE

UNIVERSITAS. Journal of Philosophy, Law and Politics is a biannual publication founded in 2004 within the Institute of Human Rights “Gregorio Peces-Barba” (formerly “Bartolomé de las Casas”) at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. It was established by students and faculty with the aim of addressing human rights issues from a multidisciplinary perspective, contributing to the strengthening of the rule of law and democracy.

UNIVERSITAS was created to provide an outlet for works produced by students and faculty within the Institute’s postgraduate programs (mainly Master’s and Doctoral). Much of the journal’s success is owed to its first director, Roberto M. Jiménez Cano. Since 2020, the Association of Students and Alumni of the Institute of Human Rights “Gregorio Peces-Barba” has joined the journal’s editorial process.

With this development, UNIVERSITAS has become a journal that welcomes scientific contributions from students and researchers in philosophy, law, and politics, regardless of their institution or affiliation.

2. JOURNAL SECTIONS

The journal accepts original and unpublished contributions in three sections: articles, reviews, and interviews.

For the “Articles” section, the journal receives scholarly works that demonstrate rigorous academic research. The goal is to disseminate contributions that reflect the methodological plurality promoted by the journal, except in cases where a special thematic issue is published.

In the “Reviews” section, the journal invites critical analyses and evaluations of recent or classic works related to Political Philosophy, Philosophy of Law, Moral Philosophy, and Human Rights from constitutional, international, or procedural perspectives.

The “Interviews” section welcomes in-depth dialogues with prominent figures in Political Philosophy, Philosophy of Law, Moral Philosophy, and Human Rights. The participation of researchers and human rights advocates from Latin America is especially valued, with the aim of highlighting diversity of perspectives and fostering inclusive, intercultural academic dialogue.

3. PEER REVIEW PROCESS

The receipt of a manuscript does not imply its acceptance for publication. Submissions are first reviewed by the editorial office to verify compliance with the editorial guidelines and alignment with the journal’s objectives and scope.

The editorial office sends anonymized copies to two reviewers appointed by the editorial board, following a double-blind peer review system that maintains anonymity for both authors and reviewers, who issue their reports within one to two months.

Based on these reports, the decision may be:

  • Recommend publication.
  • Reject publication.
  • Propose revisions to the author.

If two reports are contradictory, a third reviewer will be consulted. Authors receive a detailed and reasoned notification including the reviewers’ comments and, if applicable, the requested modifications.

4. OPEN ACCESS POLICY

UNIVERSITAS is an open-access journal, meaning that all its content is freely and immediately available to any user or institution. Users may read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of articles, or use them for any other lawful purpose, without prior permission from the author or the editor, according to the Budapest Open Access Initiative (BOAI) definition of open access.

UNIVERSITAS charges no APCs; it is a free, non-profit publication whose purposes are exclusively scientific and cultural.

Long-term preservation is guaranteed through e-Archivo, the institutional repository of Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, managed by the Library Service.

5. PLAGIARISM CONTROL

UNIVERSITAS uses Turnitin software to detect coincidences and similarities between submitted texts and previously published materials. Before external evaluation, the editorial team will subject manuscripts to a plagiarism check. If potential plagiarism is detected, the manuscript will be rejected, and the authors will be notified.

6. INDEXING DATABASES

The journal UNIVERSITAS. Journal of Philosophy, Law and Politics is indexed in the following databases:

  • Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)
  • DICE and CIRC (Integrated Classification of Scientific Journals) produced by the CSIC
  • LATINDEX Directory
  • Dialnet (University of La Rioja)
  • Miar (Matriu d'Informació per a l'Avaluació de Revistes) (University of Barcelona)
  • Ágora, Ibero-American reference information system led by the National Institute of Public Administration (INAP)
  • European Reference Index for the Humanities and Social Sciences (ERIH-PLUS)

7. ETHICS AND GOOD PRACTICES STATEMENT

UNIVERSITAS follows the standards established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) for editors of scientific journals in the management, editing, reviewing, and publication of academic work. These standards can be consulted at: https://publicationethics.org/guidance.

7.1 Editorial Policy on the Use of Artificial Intelligence

The journal acknowledges the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in academic writing and reviewing. To preserve transparency, intellectual authorship, and scientific quality, authors must:

  1. Declare any use of AI in a footnote or specific section of the manuscript.
  2. Restrict AI use to linguistic assistance tasks (spelling, grammar correction), always indicating its use.
  3. Not delegate the generation of substantial content to AI without full supervision and review by the authors.
  4. Adhere to the same originality and plagiarism standards when using AI-assisted texts or data.
  5. Clearly attribute any passages, data, or graphics produced with AI assistance.

7.2 Gender Editorial Policy and Use of Inclusive Language

The journal promotes the use of inclusive and non-sexist language in all submitted texts. Authors are encouraged to incorporate a gender perspective in their research, analysis, and writing. Reviewers should take this perspective into account during evaluation and in their reports, fostering respectful, equitable, and bias-free academic communication.

8. COPYRIGHT AND DISSEMINATION POLICY

Authors retain the intellectual property rights of articles published in UNIVERSITAS, while granting the journal non-exclusive rights for editing and publication. In line with its commitment to the dissemination of knowledge, the journal offers open access to its content, promoting wider academic and cultural exchange worldwide.

Unless otherwise indicated, all texts published in this journal are protected under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). This allows for copying, distribution, and public communication, provided that the author is properly cited and without additional restrictions. This license can be consulted at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en.

Articles published in UNIVERSITAS are disseminated through its electronic platform, mailing lists, and social networks, as well as through the communication channels of the Institute of Human Rights “Gregorio Peces-Barba.” The digital preservation policy is periodically reviewed by Universidad Carlos III de Madrid.