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Start SubmissionAmsterdam Law Forum is the online journal from the faculty of law of VU University. It serves as a platform for academic work, opinions and has a literary review. The Editorial Board, which is fully comprised of international and Dutch law students, is responsible for the journal to be published four times a year. We are delighted that you chose to write for our journal. For submission you have to follow these simple steps:
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Style sheet
1. Lay-out
You are kindly requested to format your article according to the following rules of style.
2. Abstract
If you are writing a scientific contribution, please make sure that the abstract is formatted according to the following rules.
The word 'Abstract' should be placed above the abstract, centered, neither in bold nor italics.
3. Specific points of style
4. Abbreviations
Abbreviations that are in common use (UN, EC, EU, US, NATO) need not be given in full on first use. Other abbreviations should be spelled out on first use with the abbreviation given immediately following in parentheses, e.g. World Health Organization (WHO). However, do not use an abbreviation if the name in question is only mentioned a few times – always give it in full.
Acronyms and lettered abbreviations will be rendered with no stops.
Terms such as ‘article’, ‘resolution’, ‘paragraph’, and ‘declaration’ should not be abbreviated (unless they are given in footnotes, see below). Paragraph numbers of articles should be given in parentheses, e.g. ‘Article 5(6b)’; ‘Article XII(1)’.
5. Bullets and Numbering
All bullets should be black dots. For indented bullets, use horizontal dashes.
- and this
Use common Arab numbers, and no roman numbers. For indented numbers, use Latin letters
6. Numbers and Dates
Numerals will be written out up to and including ten; 11 and above will be given in figures.
Number spans are elided to the shortest pronounceable form, so 375–6, not 375–76 or 375–376 (but 317–18).
Use the form day–month–year, e.g. 2 November 2002.
Decades: always use ‘1960s’, not ‘sixties’ or ‘60s’. Centuries are spelt out.
7. Capitalisation
Avoid capitalisation as much as possible – when they are used generically do not capitalize such words or phrases as ‘state’, ‘state parties’, ‘members’, ‘contracting parties’, ‘treaty’, and so on.
Courts, tribunal chambers and personnel: capitalise specific chambers, such as ‘Appeals Chamber’, ‘Trial Chamber I’, a generic term such as ‘trial chamber’ should not be capitalized. Where the formal functions of the Office of the Prosecutor are being discussed, then ‘Prosecutor’ should be capitalised, but it should not be when the term is used generically. Similarly, ‘defence’, ‘defendant’, ‘accused’, ‘applicant’, ‘respondent’, ‘judge’, and so on should not be capitalised. When a reference is made to the contracting parties of GATT as a body, leave capitalisation the way the author has indicated.
Spelling, miscellaneous
Please note that the following should be used:
‐ First World War, Second World War, not World War I, World War II
‐ ‘jus’, not ‘ius’ (except where the latter is given in a quotation)
‐ ‐ise endings
- 'our' spelling, e.g. 'neighbour'
‐ third world (noun), third‐world (adjective) G7, etc.
‐ fora
‐ co‐operation, co‐ordination etc.
‐ 2 bis, ter etc.
8. Citations
Citations should always be in the form of footnotes. Never use in text references. A bibliography at the end of the text is not required.
After the first reference, use short citations for the same source.
8.1 Books
Initials and last name of author, Title of book (italicised), if necessary subtitle, place of publication: publisher year of publication, page number.
Example:
D.J. Harris, Cases and Materials on International Law, London: Sweet & Maxwell 2004, p. 1089.
8.2 Articles
Initials and last name of author, ‘Title of article’, Title of journal (italicised) year of publication-issue, span of specific pages cited.
Example:
T. Koopmans, ‘Intellectual property, economy and politics', Journal on International Law 1994-1, pp. 107-108.
8.3 Cases
Please use the following styles for cases.
1. International Court of Justice
Full case name (Party v. Party), Phase, Kind of Decision, date, [year] publication, first page, at page of quote, paragraph.
Examples:
Declaration, Separate Opinions: Cite the name of the judge(s) in brackets.
Publication: if the case has not yet been published, cite full name followed by ‘(not yet published)’.
2. Permanent Court of International Justice
Full case name (Party v. Party), Phase, Kind of Decision, date, Publication Series No, at page.
Example:
SS Lotus case (France v. Turkey), PCIJ Rep Series A No 10, at 28
Series: The Series in which the case was published is given between brackets, followed by the number.
Page: the page number is preceded by ‘at’, in view of possible confusion with the publication number.
3. International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
Full case name, Kind of Decision, Case number, chamber, date.
Examples:
4. Court of Justice of the European Communities
Case Number, Name, [year] ECR number, at page.
Example:
Case 26/62, Van Gend en Loos, [1963] ECR 1, at 28.
5. European Court of Human Rights
Party v. Party, Type of Decision, date of decision, Volume publication (Series), at para.
Example:
Kostovski v. The Netherlands, Decision of 23 May 1989, [1990] ECHR (Ser. A.), at 221.
Volume number: the year of publication is used as volume number.
6. GATT & WTO Panel Reports
GATT
Panel Report country – name (parties), adopted date, publication section/page.
Example:
Panel Report United States – Measures Affecting Alcoholic and Malt Beverages, adopted 19 June 1992, BISD 39S/206.
WTO
Panel Report country – name (parties), adopted date, Number, Document, at page.
Example:
Appellate Report United States – Standards for Reformulated and Conventional Gasoline, adopted 20 May 1996, AB‐1996‐1, WT/DS2/9, at 29.
7. Arbitral Awards, etc.
For arbitral awards, follow the official style, as indicated by the reporter. If published in periodicals use the style as indicated at Articles (see 3.2), but do not italicize the title of the case.
Example:
Air Service Agreement of 27 March 1946 (United States of America v. France), 54 ILR 304 (1979).
8. National Courts
Follow the official national style as much as possible. If the result would be unclear, use the following basic rule.
Party v. Party, [year] or (year) (where volumes are numbered independently of year) report page (court date).
General example:
Argyll v. Argyll [1967] 1 Ch 302 at 324, 332.
US example:
Smith v. Jones, 32 JNI 369 (Sup.Ct. 1867). i.e. Party v. Party, report page (court date).
Case name: use the case name as it appears at the beginning of the decision in the official reporter. If no name is given, use a popular name or cite as: Judgment of day‐month‐year (full date).
Court: use the abbreviated name of the court only if it is well known. If not, cite the full name of the court. Include, if possible, the exact date of the decision: at least the year of the judgment should be mentioned.
9. International Criminal Court
Full case name, Kind of Decision, Case number, chamber, date.
Example:
Prosecutor v. Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui, Judgment on the Appeal of Mr Germain Katanga against the Oral Decision of Trial Chamber II of 12 June 2009 on the Admissibility of the Case, ICC‐01/04‐01/07‐OA8, A.Ch., 25 September 2009.
8.4. Treaties
Year, full title, reference (year of publication of reference, if available)
Examples:
1985 Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer, 24 ILM 1529 (1985).
1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, 596 UNTS 261
8.5. Internet Sources
Referring to an online source is similar to citing a book or periodical. Please include the URL and date of access.
Example:
R. Saikumar, ‘Indian Corporate Law’, at: http://legalservices.co.in/articles/article/indian-corporate-law-398-1.html (accessed on 26 October 2010).
8.6. Newspapers
Author (if known), 'title', source date, page/section.
Example:
Hechinger, Fred U. 'Schools vs. Riots.' New York Times, 30 July 1967, sec 4:7.As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.