Procedure for Handling Complaints Concerning Violations of Academic Integrity and Publication Ethics

Procedure for the Editorial Board’s review of complaints

  1. Filing a Complaint
  • A complaint may be submitted by an author, reviewer, reader, or any other member of the academic community.
  • The complaint must be submitted in writing (to the journal’s official e-mail) and contain:
  • a clear description of the alleged violation;
  • evidence (references to sources, copies of documents, text excerpts, etc.);
  • contact details of the complainant.
  1. Initial Assessment

 The complaint is registered by the executive secretary of the Editorial Board.

The Editor-in-Chief conducts a preliminary analysis of the complaint and determines whether it concerns issues of academic integrity and publication ethics.

 In case of insufficient data, the complainant may be asked to provide additional materials.

  1. Consideration by the Editorial Board

The complaint is submitted for consideration by the Editorial Board.

  • The Editorial Board evaluates:
  • the essence of the alleged violation (plagiarism, falsification of data, double publication, illegal authorship, violation of the review procedure, etc.);
  • the scope and potential impact of the violation;
  • the available evidence.

If necessary, independent experts may be involved.

  1. Decision-Making

The Editorial Board may adopt one of the following decisions:

  • Reject the complaint (if it is unfounded or not supported by evidence).
  • Make comments to the authors and oblige them to correct the errors.
  • Reject the manuscript (if the violation is detected at the review stage).
  • Withdraw the published article (with a corresponding official publication of retraction).
  • Notify the scientific institution or the author's employer about the recorded violations.
  • Refuse the author from further publications in the journal for a specified period of time (sanction).
  1. Notification of the Parties

 The author(s) and the complainant receive a written notification of the review outcome.

In case of article retraction, a notification stating the reasons is published on the journal website.

  1. Appeal
  • The author or complainant has the right to file an appeal within 30 days from the date of receiving the decision.

The appeal is considered by the editor-in-chief and, if necessary, by members of the editorial board or external experts.

  1. Principles of the procedure
  • Transparency – the procedure is well-regulated and available for review on the journal website.
  • Confidentiality – individuals filing a complaint and reviewers remain anonymous (at their request).
  • Impartiality – decisions are made collectively, taking into account all evidence.

Compliance with international standards – the procedure is based on the principles of COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics).