Appeals and Complaints Policy

Multidisciplinary Journals (MJ)  |  e-ISSN 3047-8499

This policy is informed by the COPE Core Practices and the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing. These frameworks guide the journal's internal process but do not make COPE, DOAJ, OASPA, or WAME an appellate or investigative body for individual MJ cases.

1. Governing Principles

• Fairness: each matter is assessed on its evidence, substance, and applicable policy, without regard to nationality, ethnicity, gender, disability, religion, political belief, institutional affiliation, reputation, or ability to pay.
• Independence: a person whose decision or conduct is challenged must not determine the outcome of that appeal or complaint.
• Confidentiality: information is shared only with persons who need it to assess, investigate, advise on, or resolve the matter, subject to legal and research-integrity obligations.
• Due process: a person whose decision or conduct is questioned will normally be informed of the material concern and given a reasonable opportunity to respond.
• No retaliation: a good-faith appeal or complaint will not disadvantage a person's current or future submission, review activity, institutional relationship, or access to the journal.
• Proportionality: findings and remedies are based on the seriousness, reliability, and likely effect of the available evidence.
• No charge: MJ does not charge a fee for submitting or internally reviewing an appeal or complaint.

2. Editorial Appeals

2.1 Decisions That May Be Appealed

An author may appeal a desk rejection, rejection following peer review, decision on a revised manuscript, authorship-related editorial determination, manuscript-withdrawal decision, or journal-initiated post-publication action such as a correction, expression of concern, or retraction. An appeal is a reconsideration request; it is not an automatic additional round of peer review and does not guarantee acceptance.

2.2 Valid Grounds

An appeal should identify at least one material issue capable of affecting the decision, such as:

• a significant factual error in the decision letter or reviewer assessment;
• a material departure from MJ's published editorial or peer-review procedure;
• relevant manuscript content, evidence, or explanation that was clearly overlooked;
• a credible unmanaged conflict of interest, breach of confidentiality, discriminatory treatment, or serious inappropriate conduct;
• a post-publication action that appears unsupported by or disproportionate to the available evidence; or
• another serious procedural or ethical problem that could have materially affected the outcome.

2.3 Time Limit

An appeal should normally be submitted within 30 calendar days of the decision. A later appeal may be considered when significant new evidence becomes available or exceptional circumstances prevented timely submission. The corresponding author should submit one consolidated appeal on behalf of all authors whenever possible.

3. Complaints

A complaint may concern one or more of the following areas:

Anonymous complaints may be considered when they contain sufficiently specific and verifiable information. The journal may request clarification or supporting evidence. Abusive, threatening, knowingly false, repetitive, or irrelevant communications may be restricted after the matter has been assessed and the reason for limiting further correspondence has been documented.

4. Matters Governed by Other Policies

To avoid overlapping or contradictory procedures, the journal will classify the matter on receipt and route it as follows:

• Research misconduct allegations, including plagiarism, fabricated or falsified data, manipulated peer review, duplicate publication, authorship abuse, or unethical research, are handled under the Publication Ethics and Research Integrity policies.
• Requests to correct, retract, or issue an expression of concern are evaluated under the journal's Post-Publication and Retraction policies. This page governs an appeal about how such a decision was reached, not the substantive criteria for issuing the notice.
• Authorship disputes are handled under the Authorship and Contributorship Policy. MJ may request institutional investigation because the journal cannot resolve employment or contribution disputes requiring evidence beyond the editorial record.
• Fee, waiver, or refund questions are first assessed under the published APC, Waiver, and Refund Policy. A complaint may be submitted if the published procedure was not followed.
• Legal, safety, or privacy matters may be referred immediately to the publisher, university, legal adviser, regulator, or other competent authority.

5. Submission Requirements

Submit an appeal or complaint through the journal's official contact page or, for an active submission, through the OJS discussion function. Use the subject line “Editorial Appeal” or “Formal Complaint”.

Do not include irrelevant personal data, defamatory assertions, passwords, confidential third-party records, or material obtained unlawfully. Large or sensitive files should be supplied only through a channel approved by the journal.

6. Review and Resolution Process

7. Independent Handling and Escalation

• Appeal against an assigned editor: handled by the Editor-in-Chief or another senior editor who was not materially involved in the decision.
• Matter concerning the Editor-in-Chief: referred to a designated representative of the publisher or an independent senior academic appointed by the publisher.
• Matter concerning the publisher or journal owner: referred to an appropriate senior authority of Universitas Dehasen Bengkulu or an independent adviser who is not the subject of the complaint.
• Research-integrity allegation: the journal may refer the matter to the relevant institution, ethics committee, funder, regulator, or other competent body because a journal does not have the investigative powers of an employer or public authority.
• Legal, safety, or privacy issue: the matter may be escalated immediately to the publisher and qualified legal, institutional, or public authorities.

8. Possible Outcomes

Depending on the evidence and the nature of the matter, MJ may:

A successful appeal may result in reconsideration but does not guarantee acceptance. A complaint may be substantiated, partially substantiated, unsubstantiated, unresolved because of insufficient evidence, or referred elsewhere. The reasoned outcome will identify any action that can appropriately be disclosed.

9. Final Internal Review

Normally, one substantive appeal is permitted for each editorial decision. If the appellant or complainant identifies a significant factual error, undisclosed conflict, or serious procedural defect in the first review, a final internal review may be requested within 14 calendar days of the outcome. Where feasible, it will be conducted by a person not materially involved in the earlier handling.

After the final internal review, the journal's internal process is concluded. This does not prevent a party from approaching an institution, funder, regulator, court, or other competent body where it has jurisdiction. MJ will cooperate with legitimate external processes subject to confidentiality, privacy, and legal obligations.

10. Confidentiality, Records, and Non-Retaliation

Appeals and complaints are handled as confidential editorial records. Absolute confidentiality cannot be guaranteed when fair assessment requires disclosure, when a serious concern must be referred to an institution or authority, or when disclosure is legally required. Personal information will be limited to what is relevant and handled under the journal's Privacy Statement.

No person will be penalized for raising a concern in good faith. Deliberately false allegations, fabricated evidence, harassment, threats, or misuse of the procedure may be addressed proportionately after evidence review and an opportunity to respond. Criticism of the journal, disagreement with an editor, or an unsuccessful appeal does not by itself constitute misconduct.

11. How to Submit

For an active manuscript, use the OJS discussion function whenever possible so that the communication remains connected to the editorial record. For other matters, use the official journal contact page. Do not send the same matter repeatedly through multiple personal contacts or unofficial social-media accounts.

12. Related MJ Policies