Submitting an article to LDD for consideration is simple and easy.
- Read our guidelines for authors
- Apply our house style in your article
- Complete the online form below and upload the article
Each step is set out in more detail in the sections below (click on the tabs to open them).
Guidelines for authors
Before submitting an article for publication, please read the guidelines below. By submitting an article, you will be deemed to acknowledge that you understand these guidelines and agree to the terms of publication set out therein.
Law, Democracy & Development (LDD) is an accredited journal – that is, approved by the Department of Education for the publication of subsidised research output. This means that all articles are subject to peer review – that is, assessment by anonymous, independent and suitably qualified referees whether the article is suitable for publication. This usually takes several weeks. Input from the referees may then be sent to authors for incorporation in the article, together with input from the editors, before the article is published.
LDD is an open-access electronic journal. All articles are published under a Creative Commons Attribution Licence CC-BY 4.0; copyright is retained by the authors. This means that copyright in all published material remains vested in the author thereof, but the author grants permission for the material to be made available freely on LDD’s website. LDD may also make such material available for publication on other websites of a scholarly nature, including electronic repositories of research material. The material may be quoted, downloaded and/or copied, subject to the following conditions:
- the name(s), title(s) and institutional affiliation(s) of author(s), as well as a bibliographical reference to its original publication in LDD must be included by those who use it; and
- the copyright of the author(s) – for example, the right to republish or amend the material – remains intact.
The purpose is to give maximum access to published research output as a means of encouraging research and promoting higher education. The effect is that articles published in his format enjoy far greater currency than those published commercially.
Because it is accredited and subsidised, LDD only publishes original research output. This means that we cannot consider articles which have already been published in or submitted to another journal. Authors should only submit articles which are not being considered for publication elsewhere.
LDD appears online in annual volumes, with articles published in the sequence in which they are finalised. There are, in other words, no issues appearing at set intervals. This means that edited articles can be published immediately, without waiting for the due date of a forthcoming issue. However, the editors may also combine articles in special issues (for example, conference proceedings or a series of articles dealing with a common theme). In this case the special issue will be identified and provided with its own table of contents, in addition to the appearance of the relevant articles within the annual volume.
In addition to peer-reviewed articles, LDD will continue to give space in its Forum to reviews, letters and other meritorious or informative material which may not be appropriate for the formal review process.
All contributions to LDD should be uploaded on this website (via the 'Submit articles' menu). The purpose of the procedure is to make sure that your details – and your article – are safely in our system and that the process described above can happen smoothly. In particular, it will ensure that speedy feedback can be provided. Articles may also be sent by email to The Editor-in-Chief, Law Democracy & Development at .
Alll contributions should be submitted in the house style of the journal – that is, using the format of presentation and citation which is set out under House style. Revising an article to bring it in line with the rest of the journal can be a laborious task, and the editors’ primary role is to concentrate on the substance of articles rather than their format. It is therefore more time-effective and conducive to quality if authors ensure that contributions are submitted in the required style (which is similar to that of other legal journals). Contributions that are not in the required style may be returned to authors for revision before being considered for publication.
Page fees (South African Rands 400 per page) will be charged for the articles published in the journal. Once the article has been published, an invoice will be sent to the author, who will forward it to his or her university's research department or office to make the necessary payment.
Our house-style guide
Articles should be submitted in the house style of Law, Democracy & Development (LDD). The house style sets out general rules and guidelines relating to manuscript format, references and citations, and the like. Please click below to download a PDF containing the LDD house style.
Complete our submission form
- Complete the form below, upload your article from your device, and press the 'submit' button. Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are required.
- Please provide your article in Ms Word format - no PDFs are accepted.
- We prefer, for administrative reasons, that authors submit their articles to us online using this form. However, should you be unable to do so, you are welcome to email them directly to us. Attach your article to an email and address it to our Editor-in-Chief, Prof Radley Henrico, at . In your message, provide your name and institutional affiliation, and indicate if you have submitted the article to another publication.
