Guidelines for Authors

The Journal of The Missouri Bar, previously The Missouri Bar Journal, has been in print since 1930 and continues to be relevant to the more than 31,000 lawyers, judges, and law students who comprise its readership.

The primary purpose of the Journal is to provide timely articles that address issues of substantive law for the benefit of practitioners. This is accomplished through submissions by authors who write about developing trends that affect lawyers; new laws or changes in rules, regulations, or jury instructions; or the impact of newly decided court cases.

HOW TO SUBMIT
If you are interested in writing an article, contact Editor Nicole Roberts-Hillen and Assistant Editor Genna Tlustos at journal@mobar.org. A Microsoft Word document is preferred.

FORMAT
Articles should be double-spaced, with one-inch margins. While there is not a specific word count, the recommendation is about 3,000 words (including endnotes). All language should be gender neutral. When writing, do not put citations in the main text of the article. Place a short bio of the author at the end of the article (not in the endnotes).

ENDNOTES/CITATIONS
Citations should appear only in the endnotes and should be consistent with the latest Bluebook Uniform System of Citation. Citations are required for all quoted material and other statements requiring attribution.

PHOTOGRAPH
Authors are requested to furnish a recent color hi-resolution photograph. It should be formatted as a .jpg with a resolution of no less than 300 dpi, and sent to journal@mobar.org. We have found that photos taken with a smart phone and e-mailed at “Actual Size” fit those specifications.

SCHOLARLY DIALOGUE
The Missouri Bar values scholarly dialogue and consideration of all perspectives. The article must respectfully address all arguments or viewpoints regarding a subject, and the article should not be overly one-sided. Criticism should be constructive and of issues only, not individuals.

DISCUSSION OF ACTIVE CASES AND PENDING LEGISLATION
No article submitted for publication in the Journal should focus upon, or draw conclusions from, a case that is still pending. Avoid discussion of, and advocacy for or against, any legislation that is pending before the General Assembly at the time of submission.

FIRST PUBLICATION RIGHTS
Any submitted article that has been previously published, either in whole or in part, is ineligible for publication in the Journal of The Missouri Bar. For that reason, submission of an article to multiple publications is discouraged.

REVIEW PROCESS
All articles submitted for publication in the Journal of The Missouri Bar are sent to the Editorial Board for review. This board decides whether to accept or reject an article based on the relevance of the topic to practicing lawyers, its timeliness, quality of analysis, clarity, organization, and other factors. The committee may also require authors to rewrite parts of the article as a prerequisite to approval.

This review process normally takes up to one month to complete. The Editorial Board does have the authority to recommend expedited publication if the importance or timeliness of the subject matter so warrants.

CITE-CHECKING AND EDITING
Every article approved for publication in the Journal will undergo a thorough cite-checking and editing process prior to publication. Articles will be edited for clarity, readability, and style. In addition, any political commentary will be deleted.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY
The Missouri Bar Board of Governors adopted the following conflict of interest policy:
1) Authors shall provide notice of any conflict of interest (Author Disclosure Form);
2) The Missouri Bar shall have discretion to reject or revise submissions to avoid the appearance of bias; and
3) Where appropriate, Missouri Bar publications shall provide an opportunity for opposing viewpoints to be considered.

AI POLICY 
The Missouri Bar recognizes the potential benefits and risks generative artificial intelligence poses. While generative AI has many benefits, its use must be balanced against the need to maintain the accuracy, integrity, and confidentiality of information, along with the rights of authors. Generative AI is an evolving technology with many unknowns, including the information’s origin and accuracy. Any interaction with generative AI should only be done with appropriate user due diligence, including fact-checking.

The Missouri Bar also recognizes the importance of respecting and protecting the intellectual property rights of both the bar and others while using generative AI. For instance, the unauthorized use of copyrighted materials in training generative AI or in creating derivative works can infringe on intellectual property rights. Ensuring that generative AI usage adheres to property laws is crucial to maintaining the organization's legal and ethical standards.

As such, all contributing authors agree to the following:

— The author will not present content that generative AI produced or assisted with as the author’s own original work.
— The author will disclose the use of generative AI in the production of manuscripts/articles, including research and writing. This includes the use of generative AI to implement extensive copyediting (more than what is traditionally found in Microsoft Word or similar tools).
— The author will disclose the use of generative AI in any production or editing of submitted images.
— The author will disclose the inclusion of any AI-generated content in the submitted article and provide a brief explanation of the human author’s contributions to the work. This disclosure should be displayed in the submitted article, indicating what information was created by a generative AI tool, and confirm the author has checked the information for accuracy and integrity.
— Editors at The Missouri Bar will decide if the use of generative AI warrants a disclosure to be included with the article.