Tech Law Forum

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Author Guidelines

Last Updated: September 21, 2026

1. Aims and Scope

The Tech Law Forum seeks to provide a platform for research, analysis, and discussion at the intersection of law and technology. The Forum examines technological developments as legal, regulatory, institutional, and governance challenges, with particular attention to their implications for rights, institutions, markets, and systems of accountability.

The Forum welcomes work engaging with technology law and policy in India, as well as comparative and global developments that contribute to understanding technology-law questions in the Indian and wider context.

The Forum seeks to:

  • Encourage rigorous research and critical analysis in technology law and policy.
  • Examine the legal, regulatory, institutional, and societal implications of technological developments.
  • Promote comparative and interdisciplinary perspectives on technology-law questions.
  • Engage with significant developments in technology, legislation, regulation, litigation, and public policy.
  • Facilitate accessible forms of legal scholarship and communication without compromising substantive and analytical rigour.

For a detailed overview of the Forum’s areas of interest, please see Annexure I.

Contributors

The Forum welcomes submissions from:

  • Academics and researchers;
  • Legal practitioners and policymakers;
  • Industry and technology professionals;
  • Emerging scholars; and
  • Students.

The Forum welcomes contributions from India and internationally.

2. Duties and Responsibilities of Authors

Authors and contributors are expected to maintain high standards of academic integrity, accuracy, attribution, and ethical research.

2.1 Authorship and Attribution

Authorship must be clearly and accurately attributed to individuals who have made substantial intellectual contributions to the conception, research, analysis, drafting, or substantive revision of the submission.

Authors must:

  • Have made a substantive intellectual contribution to the work;
  • Participate in drafting or revising the submission for intellectual content;
  • Approve the final version submitted for publication; and
  • Accept responsibility for the integrity and accuracy of the contribution.

Individuals who have contributed in a manner that does not meet the threshold for authorship should be acknowledged separately where appropriate.

The Forum expects authorship and attribution to reflect the actual intellectual contributions made to a submission. Contributors should not be omitted from authorship where they have made substantive intellectual contributions, nor should individuals be listed as authors solely by virtue of their position, supervision, or association with the work.

2.2 Changes in Authorship

Any addition or removal of an author after submission should be supported by a written explanation and the agreement of all affected authors.

2.3 Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest

Authors must disclose any financial, institutional, professional, or personal interests that could reasonably be perceived as relevant to the submission.

Authors should also disclose:

  • Funding or other material support for the research;
  • Relevant institutional affiliations or relationships; and
  • Any other circumstance that may reasonably affect the independence or interpretation of the contribution.

2.4 Originality and Plagiarism

Submissions must be original and must not be under consideration for publication elsewhere at the time of submission, unless the Forum has expressly agreed otherwise.

Authors must properly attribute all sources and must not reproduce text, arguments, data, ideas, or other material without appropriate acknowledgment.

Plagiarism includes, among other things:

  • Direct copying without attribution;
  • Substantial paraphrasing without attribution;
  • Misappropriation of another person’s ideas or arguments; and
  • Reuse of one’s own previously published material without appropriate disclosure and citation.

Where a submission draws substantially on previously published or unpublished work, authors must disclose this to the Forum at the time of submission.

2.5 Sources and Attribution

Authors are responsible for ensuring that factual and legal claims are adequately supported by appropriate sources.

Primary legal sources should be cited where applicable, including legislation, regulations, judicial decisions, official government materials, regulatory instruments, and other authoritative documents.

Authors should distinguish clearly between established facts, legal propositions, analysis, and opinion. Sources should be cited accurately and consistently, and hyperlinks should be provided where appropriate.

Privileged, confidential, or otherwise restricted information must not be used without appropriate authorization.

2.6 Multiple, Duplicate, or Concurrent Submissions

A submission should not ordinarily be under simultaneous consideration by another publication.

Where a contribution has previously been published, or substantially overlaps with previously published material, authors must disclose this at the time of submission and provide relevant permissions or publication details where applicable.

2.7 Use of Artificial Intelligence and Other Tools

Authors remain responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and attribution of their submissions, irrespective of the tools used in producing them.

The use of generative AI or other AI-assisted tools should not replace the author’s intellectual responsibility for the submission. Authors should independently verify legal authorities, factual claims, quotations, citations, and other substantive material.

Where the use of AI tools materially contributes to the preparation of a submission, authors should disclose such use where appropriate.

AI tools must not be used to fabricate authorities, citations, quotations, sources, data, or factual claims.

2.8 Corrections and Retractions

Authors should promptly notify the Forum if they identify a material error in a published contribution.

Where necessary, the Forum may issue a correction, clarification, or retraction depending on the nature and significance of the error.

3. Editorial Process

The Forum evaluates submissions on the basis of their:

  • Relevance to the Forum’s scope;
  • Originality and quality of analysis;
  • Depth and reliability of research;
  • Clarity of argument and structure;
  • Accuracy of legal and factual claims;
  • Quality and appropriateness of sources; and
  • Language, presentation, and overall editorial quality.

The Forum may accept a submission, request revisions, or decline publication based on these considerations.

Where appropriate, authors may receive editorial suggestions concerning substance, structure, clarity, length, or presentation. Acceptance of a submission does not preclude reasonable editorial changes before publication.

The Forum reserves the right to edit submissions for clarity, accuracy, length, consistency, and style while preserving the substance of the author’s argument.

Where a submission is declined, the Forum may provide reasons for the decision at its discretion.

Once a submission has been approved for publication, the author may be provided an opportunity to review the final version before publication.

Submission to the Forum constitutes acceptance of its applicable editorial, intellectual property, and publication policies.

4. Submissions to the Forum

4.1 Categories of Submissions

The Tech Law Forum welcomes contributions in a range of formats, including:

  • Research and Analytical Articles – Substantive examination of legal, regulatory, institutional, or policy questions in technology.
  • Critical and Opinion Pieces – Concise arguments or perspectives on contemporary technology-law and policy developments.
  • Explainers – Accessible explanations of complex legal, regulatory, technological, or policy questions.
  • Case Law Analysis – Analysis of significant judicial decisions concerning technology, digital rights, regulation, or related questions.
  • Legislative and Regulatory Analysis – Examination of new or proposed legislation, regulations, rules, regulatory actions, and policy developments.
  • Technology and Policy Updates – Concise, verified analysis of significant developments rather than merely descriptive news reporting.
  • Expert Conversations and Interviews – Structured discussions with academics, practitioners, policymakers, industry professionals, and other relevant experts.
  • Book and Literature Reviews – Critical engagement with books, reports, and other significant works relevant to technology law and policy.
  • Other Forms of Scholarship and Communication – The Forum may consider other formats where they contribute meaningfully to its aims and scope.

4.2 Length

The suggested length for standard articles and analytical contributions is 1,500–2,500 words.

Longer submissions may be considered where the subject requires more extensive treatment.

The Forum may prescribe different word limits for specific formats.

4.3 Submission Guidelines

All submissions must be made through the Google Submission Form.

  1. Scope: Submissions must fall within the Forum’s broad areas of interest in technology law, regulation, policy, governance, or related interdisciplinary questions.
  2. Language: Submissions should ordinarily be in English.
  3. Co-authorship: Co-authored submissions are permitted. The Forum may consider submissions with more than two authors where the nature of the work warrants it.
  4. Formatting: Unless otherwise specified:
    • Font: Times New Roman, Size 12
    • Line spacing: 1.5
    • Text should be submitted in an editable format.
  5. Citations: Citations should be accurate, consistent, and hyperlinked wherever reasonably possible.
  6. Originality: Submissions must be original and should not be simultaneously under consideration elsewhere.
  7. File Format: Submissions should ordinarily be submitted in Microsoft Word format (.doc or .docx), unless otherwise specified.
  8. Plagiarism: Up to 10% plagiarism is permitted.
  9. AI-Generated Content Check: AI-assisted content will be checked using AI-Detection tools, with a permissible limit of 10% AI-generated content.

4.4 Submission and Publication

The Forum does not charge authors a fee for submission or publication.

The Forum does not ordinarily accept promotional or sponsored content.

Submissions accepted for publication will be published on the Tech Law Forum’s website.

The Forum may determine the appropriate format and placement of an accepted contribution based on its nature and editorial requirements.

5. Editorial Standards

The Tech Law Forum seeks to maintain a publication standard grounded in:

  • Accuracy – Legal, factual, and technical claims should be carefully verified.
  • Attribution – Arguments, evidence, data, and perspectives should be appropriately attributed.
  • Originality – Contributions should offer substantive insight, analysis, or synthesis.
  • Clarity – Complex technology-law questions should be communicated clearly without unnecessary simplification.
  • Research – Submissions should demonstrate engagement with relevant primary and secondary sources.
  • Balance and intellectual openness – Contributions should engage fairly with relevant competing arguments and perspectives.
  • Accessibility – Scholarship should remain accessible to readers beyond a narrowly specialised audience while retaining analytical rigour.

The Forum may decline submissions that are inadequately researched, materially inaccurate, substantially derivative, promotional in character, or inconsistent with these editorial standards.

Any queries or complaints may be addressed to the TLF Editorial Board on techlawforum@nalsar.ac.in.

— Editorial Board (2026-27), Tech Law Forum @ NALSAR