For all submissions to the Journal of Digital Sharia and Contemporary Legal Thought that involve human participants, authors are required to demonstrate full compliance with internationally recognized ethical standards governing socio-legal and religious research. Each manuscript must provide clear evidence of prior ethical approval from an appropriate review body and demonstrate adherence to the following principles:

Protection of Human Participants and Confidentiality

Authors must safeguard the dignity, welfare, and legal rights of all participants, including the secure handling, storage, and processing of sensitive or personally identifiable information, particularly in studies involving digital platforms, legal documentation, or religious practices.

Risk Assessment and Harm Mitigation

Authors are expected to exercise due diligence in identifying, assessing, and mitigating any potential physical, psychological, social, legal, or reputational risks arising from participation, especially in research addressing sharia norms, legal authority, or digitally mediated regulatory contexts.

Respect for Personal Boundaries

Research designs and data collection procedures must respect participants’ personal, cultural, and legal boundaries and must not involve undue intrusion, coercion, or manipulation.

Informed and Voluntary Consent

Authors must obtain freely given and fully informed consent through transparent communication of the research objectives, methodologies, potential risks, and participants’ rights, including the right to withdraw without penalty.

Confidentiality and Anonymity Rights

Robust measures must be implemented to ensure confidentiality and anonymity, unless participants have explicitly and documented permission to disclose, in accordance with applicable legal and ethical standards.

Equitable Recognition or Compensation

Where appropriate, authors should ensure fair recognition, acknowledgment, or compensation for participants’ contributions, consistent with accepted ethical norms and legal considerations.

Protection of Intellectual Property

Authors must respect and appropriately document participants’ intellectual property rights, including rights related to co-produced knowledge, legal narratives, or culturally embedded religious and normative practices.

Acknowledgment of Participant Involvement

The scope and nature of participant involvement must be clearly described, while ensuring that such acknowledgment does not compromise anonymity, confidentiality, or legal protection.

Reference

Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). (2019). Guidelines on Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Human Subjects.