The procedure for consideration and reviewing of articles

The author sends an article to the editorial office in accordance with the requirements to scientific articles to be submitted for publication in the journal «Forensic Examination of Belarus».

Manuscripts of scientific articles are registered in the editorial office upon their receipt (by mail, by e-mail, by delivery to the location of the editorial office by the author himself).

Manuscripts are the intellectual property of the authors and relate to information that is not subject to disclosure.

The right of priority publication of scientific articles is granted to persons engaged in postgraduate studies (postgraduate, doctoral, etc), in the year of completion of studies. The fee for the publication of scientific articles is not charged.

Manuscripts are checked for completeness of the package of documents submitted, compliance with the present requirements, conformity the profile of the journal and the scientific level.

In the case of non-compliance, the article is not accepted for further consideration. Manuscripts and other materials attached to the article are not returned to the authors. The authors are not informed about the refusal to publish and its grounds.

After receipt of the article and its preliminary assessment by the editor-in-chief, it is sent for review to one or, if necessary, several reviewers. When assessing the quality of articles, single and double-blind review is used. The editorial office can invite reviews from members of editorial board, editorial collegiums, and external experts with a Ph.D. or Doc. Hab. degree, or practical experience in the relevant field. Single review by the editor-in-chief is allowed.

The reviewer should consider the article sent to him in a timely manner and send to the editorial office a properly executed review, or a reasoned refusal to review.

Reviewers should adhere to the ethical requirements of the journal.

Recommendations for the content of the review:

1. General characteristics of the article (title, authors, volume);
2. General characteristics of the issue (main problematic issue) of the article;
3. Compliance of the problems of the article with the profile of the journal and the branches of science for which the journal is included in the Higher Attestation Committee List;
4. The relevance of the issues addressed in the article, as well as the characterization and assessment of the content (whether the topic corresponds to the title, the appropriateness of publishing the article, whether the article is of interest to a certain circle of readers, whether the material corresponds to the modern achievements of science and technology);
5. The scientific contribution of the authors (the presence and significance of the new scientific results presented in the article);
6. Qualitative and quantitative assessment of the scientific material cited in the article (factual, illustrative);
7. The correctness of terminology, clarity of presentation, style of language;
8. Comprehensive review of the literature;
9. Positive aspects, as well as the shortcomings of the article;
10. Comments on the presentation and design of the manuscript;
11. Remarks of the reviewer aimed at improving the scientific and methodological level of the article.

If the reviewer, with a generally positive opinion, has significant comments on the article under review, in agreement with the editors, they can be published in the form of comments, while the author is given the opportunity to give a public response to the reviewer in the journal.

The review is certified (the signature of the reviewer, the stamp of the institution) in the manner prescribed by the institution where the reviewer works. If this requirement cannot be fulfilled (for example, the reviewer has no work), the issue is resolved in agreement with the editorial office.

Based on the review results, the following decisions can be made:

• publish the article as it is / as presented;
• publish with minor changes / with revision;
• send for revision, according to the results of which to re-review (if significant changes are necessary);
• reject (if significant processing is required, with the possibility of re-supply of manuscript with the elimination of deficiencies);
• reject without permission resubmission (if the material has fundamental flaws, contains plagiarism or does not correspond to the subject-matter of the journal).

Having a positive review is not in itself a sufficient reason to publish an article. The final decision is made by the chief editor of the journal, taking into account the views of the editorial board and the editorial collegium.

The article can be transferred to the author for revision via e-mail or regular mail if the reviewer indicates that adjustments are necessary.

The scientific article submitted to the author for correction should be sent to the editor-in-chief in a revised form within 6 months, otherwise the author is considered to have withdrawn the publication from consideration. An explanatory letter should be attached to the revised manuscript, containing answers to all comments and an indication of the corrections that have been made. The editorial office reserves the right to refuse to publish the author, who wished to leave the reviewer's comments without attention.

If an article has been revised by the reviewer's recommendation, it may be sent for re-review.

An article not recommended by the reviewer for publication is not accepted for reconsideration.

The editorial staff of the journal has the right to make corrections and editorial changes to the manuscripts of the materials. The editorial board shall take all possible measures to coordinate with the author the corrections introduced.

The authors of the materials are responsible for the accuracy of the facts and information provided, as well as for the placement of data which is not to be published in open access media. The editors can publish articles in the framework of scientific discussion, without sharing the author's point of view.

The materials which were published or offered to several journals shall not be taken for consideration.

Only original materials that were not previously published and not accepted for publication by other publications are accepted for publication in the journal.

The editorial board has the right to make cuts and editorial changes to the manuscripts. The editors take all possible measures to get approval from the author of the editorial changes made in the article.

The authors of the materials are responsible for the accuracy of the facts and information provided, as well as for the content of data in the materials that are not subject to open publication. The editors can print articles in the framework of scientific discussion, without sharing the point of view of the author.

The author receives information on the status of his article upon request.

Manuscripts accepted for publication and rejected are stored (together with reviews) in the editorial archive for 5 (term) years. Manuscripts are not returned.