Editorial Policy & Submission Guidelines

The Bencher Editorial Policy

Article submissions to The Bencher® are reviewed by members of the editorial board who are or have been affiliated with the American Inns of Court. Editorial and publication decisions are based on the board's judgment. The views expressed in The Bencher® are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the American Inns of Court or the editorial board.

The editorial board welcomes comments and suggestions. Letters, especially those that contribute to furthering discussions of professionalism, may be published at the discretion of the editorial board. By submitting a letter, you are authorizing its publication. Letters may be modified to meet space and content restrictions.

Submission Guidelines

All submissions should be sent by e-mail to Rita Zimmerman, Editor. Please cc: your Chapter Relations Director when submitting Inn the News items.

Feature Articles: Authors are invited to submit original feature length articles on the topics of professionalism, legal ethics, civility, mentoring, and other subjects that advance the cause of excellence in the practice of law. Please reference our schedule for a listing of current themes and deadlines for our upcoming issues. Recommended article length is 1000–2000 words and MS Word or WordPerfect files are preferred. Please avoid the use of footnotes or endnotes.

Inn the News: Inns are invited to submit Inn-related news items for inclusion in the "Inn the News" section of The Bencher. Inn the News submissions are not subject to deadlines, but may be published upon receipt in the next available issue. Submissions received as part of the Achieving Excellence program must be submitted within 60 days of the date of the event. Recommended word count is 350 words or less. Longer articles will be considered, but may be subject to substantial editing. Inns are also encouraged to submit photos related to their news item(s). Please refer to the photo and image submission guidelines below. Please note that The Bencher® does not publish "congratulatory" news or information that promotes a business, service, or publication. For more information about Inn the News submissions and examples can be found here.

Photographs and Images: Please submit ".jpg" or ".tif" files with a minimum resolution of 300 dpi (high-resolution). Head shots should be 300dpi and at least 2"x3". Please note that photos and images posted or saved from the internet are low resolution and not suitable for commercial printing. Original photographic prints are accepted, but will not be returned.

Style Guide

The American Inns of Court uses and recommends that authors refer to The Chicago Manual of Style (16th Ed.). If using citations, refer to The Bluebook—A Uniform System of Citation.

Copyright

Before publishing an article, authors will be sent a copyright confirmation and release authorizing us to publish or use the article as we choose free of any claims against us for its use. If a previously published work is submitted, you are required to certify that you have retained publication rights and/or obtained consent from any other author(s) or entities that have previously published the article or any substantial portion thereof.