Defense Counsel Journal Submissions

Defense Counsel Journal, the quarterly publication of the International Association of Defense Counsel, is a forum for the publication of topical and scholarly writings on the law, its development and reform, and on the practice of law, particularly from the viewpoint of the trial advocate or the manager of the defense of civil litigation and insurance related claims. Feature articles include the fields of torts; insurance law; procedural law; case management; trial advocacy; ethics and professionalism; alternative dispute resolution; and the public policy, social, and economic considerations related to those fields. Feature articles are of law review type and quality, with a breadth and analysis beyond case reviews and comments. 

General Policy

The opinions and positions stated in signed material are those of the authors and not by the fact of publication necessarily those of the IADC. Material accepted for publication becomes property of the IADC and will be copyrighted by the IADC. Previous publication usually disqualifies an article from consideration. In some instances, however, exceptions may be made to this policy.   

Authors are expected and requested to disclose any financial, economic, or professional interests or affiliations that may have influenced positions taken or advocated in their articles. The requested disclosure includes representation or participation in cases discussed in the article. An author's financial, economic, or professional interest in the subject matter does not disqualify an article, but the disclosure is requested.

Committee Responsibilities

IADC Substantive Law Committees, through their Vice Chairs of Publications, are requested to provide the Defense Counsel Journal with at least two feature articles during an IADC year. These articles may be the work of committee members, IADC members, or others. In many instances, material produced by Committees for IADC continuing legal education programs or for internal committee programs can be converted to feature article format.

Vice Chairs of Publications are responsible for choosing the subject matter for articles and for contacting authors. Since feature articles are subject to the Journal's approval process, the Editor or Managing Editor will consult with a Vice Chair, if requested to do so, about proposed articles, particularly with respect to whether the subject matter is dealt with in articles already approved for publication. Vice Chairs should receive the article in the first instance, determine its suitability for publication, and communicate with the author with regard to any further work that needs to be done. The turn around time should be short so that the article can be forwarded on to the Journal promptly.

Vice Chairs should exercise care in selecting authors in order to ensure quality articles and to avoid any embarrassment that might result should the article not be accepted for publication. Because of their familiarity and knowledge of the subject matter areas, Vice Chairs of Publications are expected to be able to recommend whether a solicited article should be published.

Manuscripts

Feature articles generally range from 3,000 to 8,000 words in length, although exceptions sometimes are made. The Journal follows The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation.

Please send manuscripts to the Managing Editor via email (aomaley@iadclaw.org). All material submitted is subject to evaluation by the Editorial Board. If accepted for publication, manuscripts, if not already provided via email, should be made available in electronic form.

Publication Schedule

Defense Counsel Journal is a quarterly publication with cover dates of January, April, July, and October. To be considered for a particular issue, a manuscript must be received at least thirteen weeks in advance of the cover date — that is, for example, October 1 for the January issue. Manuscripts as edited for publication are sent to the author for final alterations or updating, if necessary, shortly before publication.

Please contact the managing editor with any questions:

Amy O'Maley McGuire
Managing Editor, Defense Counsel Journal
International Association of Defense Counsel
303 West Madison Street, Suite 925
Chicago, IL 60606
Telephone: (312) 252-3802
Email: aomaley@iadclaw.org

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