We are pleased to introduce the second issue of Direito GV Law Review in 2017 (Vol. 13, No. 2, May-Aug. 2017). This issue brings together twelve unpublished articles; two foreign and ten national, covering substantially different topics.
One aspect of this issue is noteworthy and deserves attention. Of the total number of articles published here, 25% (that is, three articles) were submitted in English. We have seen an increase in the number of original submissions in English, both by Brazilian authors and by foreign authors. Considering the recommendations of the SciELO platform – that Brazilian journals in the applied social sciences should publish at least 25% of their articles in English from2016 onwards 1 – this is an interesting development, as it shows a convergence between the actions of Direito GV Law Review and the policies of the SciELO platform.
We argued in a previous Editorial (Vol. 12, No. 2, May-Aug. 2016) that a mere change in the language does not necessarily imply an increase in international submissions, nor does it imply a greater international impact of the Brazilian journals, either in the number of downloads or citations. Especially because academic production in certain areas may have an undeniable local interest. By publishing research on issues and problems which do not interest other countries – especially the Northern Hemisphere – the publishing of articles in English may incur an expense that will not result in the expected benefits. The area of law could benefit more by seeking a greater exchange with Latin American countries and Spain. According to this perspective, it would make more sense to encourage publication in Spanish, in addition to Portuguese. That is to say we consider that the unrestricted adoption of English in publications as a substitute for Portuguese in the area of law is still arguable.
That being said, it is undeniable that there are articles that would benefit from publication in English, due to their subject, facilitating exposure to a wider readership, including foreign readers. Thus, given the specificity of each area or even sub-area of legal knowledge, we have enthusiastically welcomed the submission of original articles in English. We invite other authors to submit articles in this language in the future.
Finally, we would like to thank the anonymous reviewers who, through their silent but fundamental work, have helped authors in the development of the published texts.
Enjoy your reading!
Catarina Helena Cortada Barbieri
Editor-in-chief
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1
Please refer to Table 4 (p. 16) in Critérios, política e procedimentos para a admissão e a permanência de periódicos científicos na Coleção SciELO Brasil. São Paulo: SciELO, 2014. Available at: <http://www.scielo.br/avaliacao/20141003NovosCriterios_SciELO_Brasil.pdf>. Accessed on: June 26, 2017.
Publication Dates
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Publication in this collection
Aug 2017
