Call for Papers: Lex Specialis, Minnesota Journal of International Law Digital Supplement, Spring 2027 Special Edition on Judicial Responses to State Violence [3,000-8,000 Words, No Fee]

The Minnesota Journal of International Law (MJIL) is a student-led publication at the University of Minnesota Law School that aspires to be a leader in the multidisciplinary study of international and comparative law. The Journal publishes two volumes each year in addition to its digital supplement, Lex Specialis.

Lex Specialis is the Journal's digital companion publication. It houses scholarship that addresses more timely, immediate and less traditional areas of international law, in a way that supplements the pieces and conversations featured in the print edition of the main journal. Its current issue is Volume 1, Issue 1 (2025).

The special edition is titled Judicial Responses to State Violence: Comparative Perspectives on Accountability. It will contribute to comparative scholarship on the role of courts, tribunals and judges in strengthening accountability for state actors engaged in human rights violations.

The Journal states that this special theme responds to violence by federal agents in Minneapolis as part of Operation Metro Surge beginning in December 2025. Submissions featuring human rights violations in any context are welcome, and the editors record a particular interest in judicial responses to violations relating to arbitrary detention, due process, extrajudicial killings, non-refoulement, excessive force and discrimination.

The edition seeks contributions that identify opportunities to hold state actors accountable for committing serious human rights violations, and that analyse how such claims are received by judicial bodies.

• Submissions should identify a particular case, or group of cases, from a single jurisdiction adjudicating claims of state violence.
• The article should analyse the particular legal, political and/or social dynamics that contributed to that case's success.
• The stated goal is to showcase cases and disputes from different jurisdictions where judges strengthen human rights under domestic and international law frameworks when confronted with claims of violence by state actors.

By way of example, the call notes that articles could discuss judicially created doctrines that prohibit harmful state action, re-distribute the balance of power or allow recovery. Articles could also analyse what judicial bodies require of parties bringing a claim, the kinds of remedies granted, or how corresponding political institutions respond.

The call places no restriction on the author's nationality, institution or jurisdiction, and expressly invites comparative work drawn from any jurisdiction. Academics, practitioners and law students may therefore submit, and Indian contributors writing on domestic or comparative jurisprudence relating to state violence are within scope.

The single originality condition is that articles previously published in any form, including as a law review note, will not be accepted.

• Length: 3,000 to 8,000 words, including citations.
• Format: Microsoft Word file, attached to the submission email.
• Citations: Bluebook form.
• Accompanying material: a short biography of the writer and a two or three sentence summary of the article, both included in the body of the submission email.

All articles must be submitted in a single email message to mjil@umn.edu, using the subject line:

• Lex Specialis Submission: [Author Last Name] - [Article Title]

Please note that this email route applies to this Lex Specialis special edition. MJIL's standing policy for its print journal directs manuscripts through Scholastica and asks authors not to email manuscripts, so applicants should follow the special edition instructions above rather than the general print-journal route.

Submissions will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and the call closes on 31 August 2026. Accepted articles are intended for the Spring 2027 edition of Lex Specialis.

Articles will be evaluated on the extent to which they:

• conform to the standards of professional legal writing;
• are timely or novel in concept;
• predominantly focus on the themes set out above; and
• are adequately supported by sources identified in footnotes.

The call states no submission fee, processing charge or publication charge at any stage. Participation is free.

After publication, authors may reproduce their individual articles and columns online, so long as the Journal is cited.

Submissions go to mjil@umn.edu. Additional questions may be directed to Alec Boulton, Lead Articles Editor (boult029@umn.edu), or Mackenzie Gearin, Editor in Chief (geari019@umn.edu).

The Journal's postal address is Minnesota Journal of International Law, University of Minnesota Law School, 229 19th Avenue South, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455, United States, and its listed telephone number is +1 612-625-6884.