Plagiarism Policy

The Journal of Private and Property Law (JPPL), Rivers State University is committed to upholding the highest standards of academic integrity, originality, and ethical legal scholarship. The journal strictly prohibits plagiarism in all forms and requires authors to submit only original work that is properly cited and referenced.

Definition of Plagiarism

Plagiarism is defined as the use of another person’s ideas, words, data, or research findings without proper acknowledgment or permission. This includes verbatim copying, paraphrasing without citation, self-plagiarism, and the submission of work that has been previously published elsewhere without appropriate disclosure.

Screening for Plagiarism

All manuscripts submitted to JPPL are screened for originality using recognized plagiarism detection tools such as Turnitin and iThenticate before they are sent for peer review. Manuscripts with a high similarity index or clear evidence of plagiarism will either be returned to the authors for correction or rejected outright.

Acceptable Similarity Index

JPPL generally considers a similarity index of less than 20% acceptable, provided that no single source accounts for an unreasonable proportion and that all materials are properly cited. Manuscripts exceeding this threshold may undergo further editorial scrutiny and may be rejected where necessary.

Forms of Plagiarism Considered Misconduct

The journal regards the following practices as serious ethical violations:

  • Direct copying of text without quotation marks or proper citation
  • Paraphrasing substantial portions of another work without appropriate acknowledgment
  • Self-plagiarism or redundant publication
  • Data fabrication or falsification
  • Submission of manuscripts previously published or concurrently under review elsewhere

Actions in Cases of Plagiarism

If plagiarism is detected at any stage of the editorial or publication process, JPPL may take one or more of the following actions:

  • Immediate rejection of the manuscript
  • Request for revision and proper citation
  • Notification to the author’s affiliated institution where necessary
  • Retraction of published articles if plagiarism is discovered after publication

JPPL adheres to international best practices in publication ethics as recommended by the Committee on Publication Ethics.

Author Responsibility

Authors are solely responsible for ensuring that their submissions are entirely original and that all sources are appropriately acknowledged. Proper citation must be given for all referenced materials, including text, figures, tables, and data.

By submitting a manuscript to JPPL, authors confirm that their work is free from plagiarism and complies with the ethical standards of scholarly publishing.