Directors’ Remarks
The Quebec Journal of International Law (QJIL) is the scientific body of the Société québécoise de droit international (SQDI). Created in 1984 by Professor Jacques-Yvan Morin, it publishes two issues per year. The Journal is dedicated to providing an overview of research and practice in international law in Quebec, within francophone communities and abroad. As the only journal of international law in the Americas to publish mainly in French, the Journal constitutes an entryway to the continent for all French-speaking legal communities. Eager to reflect the evolution of international law in the Americas, the Journal also publishes articles in English and Spanish.
A scientific reference tool, the Journal publishes studies, notes and commentaries, case law reviews as well as book reviews on topics of international law. The Editorial Board is comprised of students recruited from the faculties of law in Quebec: Université de Montréal, McGill University, Université du Québec à Montréal, Université de Sherbrooke and Université Laval. Students from the University of Ottawa also participate in our Editorial Board.
Individual academics, jurists, law practitioners and students from all over the world constitute the readership of the QJIL. Libraries of law and public administration in universities throughout Canada, the United States and Europe form an important part of the Journal’s institutional subscribers. The Journal also represents a reference tool for private companies, law firms and legal professionals in the public sector. Furthermore, the Journal now benefits from a wider subscription audience considering that it publishes articles in English and in Spanish. In the digital age, the QJIL is pleased to offer its complete collection in free access to the legal community.
Since its first release, the Journal has published articles from over sixty world-renowned authors. The director and the editorship of the Journal are responsible for the solicitation of new manuscripts and, for this purpose, regularly approach professors, jurists, lawyers and experts working for governments or private companies, and of course international – as well as regional and non-governmental – organizations. Moreover, a call for manuscripts is permanently open for whomever wishes to submit an article to our peer review committee. This committee is comprised of no less than fifty jurists and experts of international law from different parts of the world. The committee’s main task is to evaluate the scientific quality of articles and reviews submitted for publication, in order to maintain the Journal’s reputation of professionalism and rigor.
In addition to its regular issues, the QJIL occasionally publishes special edition issues, either thematic or partially thematic. Thus, volume 11.2 was dedicated to the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, volume 12.2 to the contemporary practice of international private law, volume 13.1 to the fiftieth anniversary of the European Convention on Human Rights, volume 14.1 to the evolution of refugee rights law and volume 18.1 to the World Summit on the Information Society. Since 2007, following the publication of the special edition issue in honour of Professor Katia Boustany, former president of the SQDI, the Journal annually publishes one or two special editions. This collection of special editions currently includes 9 excellent issues, many of which are comprised of conference proceedings or mélanges, a series of articles in honour of a renowned jurist. As Director of the QJIL, I would like to thank all of the Journal’s collaborators who, in the past years, contributed to putting together this special collection, which only diversifies and enhances our scientific output. A true added value to our regular collection.
Thanks to partnerships with numerous publishing houses – including Bruylant, Pedone, L.G.D.J., Cambridge Press, Oxford Press, Wilson & Lafleur, Montchrestien, Dalloz, PUF and Seuil – the QJIL publishes, in digital and paper formats, a book review section which offers its readership a commented access to the most recent publications in international law. Considering that the Journal aims to offer a representative sample of the current literature in the field, it actively seeks to enlist the collaboration of other South American, Asian and African publishing houses.
Finally, as an essential tool for academics as well as practitioners, the Case Law Reviews section, which includes the Quebec Case Law Review on Public and Private International Law and the Review of International Developments, provides an overview of the activities of international and national courts during the current year, as well as an overview of the practice of legislative and executive branches of government in Quebec. As the only of their kind, these reviews allow our readership to gain an overview of evolving practice of international law.
François Roch and Kristine Plouffe-Malette
Co-directors of the QJIL
