Preparing Articles

This guide describes how to prepare contributions for submission. 

The JAG Reporter publishes articles on significant, current, and developing areas of interest to the legal and military communities. See Getting Published in The JAG Reporter: The Editorial Process for an explanation of The JAG Reporter’s editorial criteria for publication, board review, and how editors handle papers after submission. 

We recommend you read this in full if you have not previously submitted a contribution to The JAG Reporter. We also recommend that, before submission, you familiarize yourself with The JAG Reporter’s style and content by reviewing some of the articles on the The JAG Reporter website, particularly if you have not submitted an article recently.

1.1 Articles 

Articles must be complete (rather than proposals, rough drafts, or sample works) and in an electronic format (Microsoft Word document). Authors are asked to describe the article in a cover letter and indicate the expected audience. Submissions are evaluated for originality, contribution to a significant legal issue or military profession of arms topic, and appropriateness for the overall AFJAGS publishing program. 

Articles submitted to The JAG Reporter must not be under consideration for publication elsewhere. The JAG Reporter does not publish material committed for publication in other journals. 

The JAG Reporter and The Air Force Judge Advocate General’s School are unable to provide payment or royalty to authors. 

Articles must have a cover letter, as detailed below. The abstract, separate from the main text of the article, is limited to 150 words, does not have references, and does not contain numbers, abbreviations, or acronyms. It is aimed at readers outside the discipline. This abstract contains a paragraph of basic-level introduction to the field, including a brief account of the background and rationale of the work; a statement of the main conclusions; and finally, 2-3 sentences putting the main findings into general context so it is clear how the results described in the article have moved the field forwards. 

Articles should be between 500 and 3,500 words, including endnotes. Any submissions greater than 3,500 words may be rejected without full review. 

Articles submitted must not contain author information or identification in the body or endnotes. Authors are expected to sanitize their article. This allows for a blind board review. Author information appropriately goes in the accompanying cover letter, discussed below.

1.2 Book Reviews and Letters to the Editor 

The JAG Reporter does not currently accept any book reviews or Letters to the Editor. If you find an article worthy of written response, the most appropriate format is to write a counter-argument article for submission.

See Getting Published in The JAG Reporter: The Editorial Process for an explanation of The JAG Reporter’s editorial criteria for publication, board review, and how editors handle papers after submission. Submission is taken by The JAG Reporter to mean that all the listed authors have agreed all of the contents.

Write in plain English (see, https://www.esd.whs.mil/DD/plainlanguage/). While The JAG Reporter is a military legal publication, writing in “legalese” or “military” speak or overusing acronyms and jargon can be alienating to most readers and may demonstrate an inability to discuss an issue concisely, coherently, and knowingly. We value your subject matter expertise, but most readers appreciate easily consumable material. Writing for an extremely limited audience (i.e., “niche” practices) is not publishable. Submissions should be as close to “publication ready” as possible.

Contributions should be double spaced and written in English. Titles and headings should be short and simple; do not use Roman numeral heading structures, as this is a blog-style online publication. Do not embed tables, figures, and photographs. These items must be submitted as a separate file. The article will appear differently when it is published online. 

4.1 Text 

Articles should be between 500 and 3,500 words, including endnotes. Our only accepted format for text is Microsoft Word, with the style tags removed. Font will be 12-point Times New Roman. For mathematical symbols, Greek letters, and other special characters, use normal text or Symbol font. Word Equation Editor/MathType should be used only for formulae that cannot be produced using normal text or Symbol font. 

When submitting articles, authors should state in a cover letter (See Section 5, Submission & Cover Letter, for more information) to the editor the word length of their paper. Authors who exceed the word limits may have their article rejected without board review. 

4.2 Endnotes 

Endnotes should be used sparingly. Format for endnotes must follow the most recent editions of The Bluebook and The Purple Book (a guide for Bluebook-style citations for military practice). Endnotes must be hyperlinked with the text referenced. While explanatory footnotes occur in legal practice, these types of explanations in endnotes are strongly discouraged; cite only direct quotations and paraphrases. Use your article as the vessel for explaining and arguing your content rather than endnotes. Endnotes count toward the total word count. 

Do not submit author biographical information as an endnote. Do not submit a bibliography. 

4.3 Tables 

Tables should each be presented on a separate page, portrait (not landscape) orientation, and upright on the page, not sideways. 

Tables have a short, one-line title in bold text. Tables should be as small as possible. Symbols and abbreviations are defined immediately below the table, followed by essential descriptive material as briefly as possible, all in double-spaced text. Submit tables separately, and be sure to be clear in your article where the table should be placed. 

4.4 Figures & Photographs 

Figures should be as small, simple, and clear. Figures should be comprehensible to readers in other or related disciplines, and to assist their understanding of the paper. Avoid unnecessary complexity, coloring, and excessive detail. At initial submission, figures should be at good enough quality to be assessed by the editors, as JPEG or PNG format, supplied separately. All figures and photographs must be submitted in high resolution. 

Photographs must contain a written statement captioning the detailed context. Photograph credit must clearly identify the photographer, and photographs cannot be subject to copyright. No photographs of foreign nationals are permitted. Photographs involving minors must have parental or guardian written consent to publication. AFJAGS reserves the right to use, edit, or crop photographs as needed. Photographs may be used for a specific issue or archived for future use. Not all photographs may be published. 

The article submitted must have a clear placemarker identifying the position of photographs and figures.

Articles much be submitted via email to afloa.afjags@us.af.mil. When submitting a article, authors are required to include a cover letter (see Air Force Handbook 33-338, The Tongue and Quill, for formal letter guidance). Items submitted without a cover letter may be subject to rejection prior to review. The cover letter must detail: 

• Full name of all authors 
• Author service and rank (if applicable) 
• Current position/prospective assignment of author(s) 
• Telephone number of author(s) 
• Physical mailing address of author(s) 
• Author(s) supervisor name and contact information, if author is under Department of the Air Force 
• Abstract 
• Intended Audience 
• Keywords 
• Number of figures 
• Number of tables 
• Number of words, including endnotes 
• List of attachments, including the article, photographs, and tables and figures. 

All contributors must agree to all of AFJAGS’ publication policies.

• Getting Published in The JAG Reporter: The Editorial Process (PDF)
• Getting Published in The JAG Reporter: The Editorial Process (Website)
• Author Agreement (PDF)
• Bluebook (Website)
• Purple Book (PDF)
• DoD Plain Language Website