The editorial office of the journal “Problems of Forensic Sciences” (“Z Zagadnień Nauk Sądowych”) adheres to the principles of publication ethics and scientific integrity aimed at preventing unethical practices and ensuring the confidentiality and security of personal data processing.

All submitted articles are evaluated for compliance with ethical standards, reliability, scientific value and usefulness, in accordance with the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE – Committee on Publication Ethics).

Principles regarding Authors

Authors are required to submit only original work that has not been previously published or submitted for publication in other journals, publishing houses, or electronic media (e.g., websites). Manuscripts must be prepared in accordance with the guidelines specified by the journal’s editorial office, and submitted together with a completed declaration of each author’s individual contributions to the publication. The submitting author is responsible for the accuracy of this declaration. Ghostwriting (e.g., omitting the names of individuals who contributed to the publication) and guest authorship (e.g., attributing authorship to individuals who did not contribute to the work) are strictly prohibited.

For works based on research involving humans, animals, or biological material derived from humans or animals, authors are required to include a declaration that meets the requirements outlined in section 4 of the Instructions for Authors. Furthermore, authors should note that any forensic data presented in their work must be fully anonymized, and its use may require obtaining appropriate consent.

Scientific texts published in “Problems of Forensic Sciences” must be authored exclusively by humans. If the authors used AI tools at any stage of the article’s development, this must be indicated in the appropriate declaration. The authors therefore bear full responsibility for the content of the published text.

Principles regarding Reviewers

The editorial office adheres to the principle of double-blind review and ensures that neither reviewers nor authors are aware of each other’s identities. Reviewers declare that they are competent in the relevant field and have appropriate academic achievements. They also declare – if the group of specialists is not too small – that they are not affiliated with the same institution as the authors. Reviewers are obligated to maintain confidentiality until the publication of the reviewed manuscript. Reviewers may not use reviewed works for their own personal purposes or gain. Furthermore, they should refrain from evaluating manuscripts where a conflict of interest with the author(s) may exist. The editorial office allows reviewers full discretion in deciding whether to accept or decline an invitation to review a manuscript.

Editorial Team Commitments

The editorial office is obligated to make every effort to maintain the integrity of published works. To this end, they may introduce appropriate corrections and, in cases of suspected misconduct (such as plagiarism, falsification of research results), may decide to withdraw a text from publication. When making publication decisions, the editorial team relies solely on the evaluations of reviewers and the opinions of the thematic and substantive editors. The decision depends on the article’s scholarly value and its relevance to the purpose and thematic scope of the publication. The risk of copyright infringement is also taken into consideration when deciding whether to publish.

The editorial office informs that any instance of concealing the use of AI tools in the preparation of an article will be treated as a violation of the principles of publication ethics. In such cases, the editorial team reserves the right to reject the article and withhold its publication in the journal.