Journal profile · LAW
Criminal Law and Philosophy
ISSN 1871-9791 · eISSN 1871-9805 · Springer Nature · 3 issues per year
Criminal Law and Philosophy: CAS Zone 3 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 0.6 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,090; median 208 days to acceptance (40 articles, last 24 months); 36 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Criminal Law and Philosophy is published by Springer Nature and is in Zone 3 of Sociology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Free Will and Agency, War, Ethics, and Justification and Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis, together about 41.7% of its articles. Its main subfields are Law. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Rationale The philosophy of crime and criminal law has been undergoing a renaissance.Increasing numbers of lawyers and philosophers are researching, writing and teaching in the area. Lawyers who are exploring theoretical issues related to criminal liability and punishment find that they must turn to philosophy. Philosophers recognise the importance of the criminal law as a focus for both analytical and normative inquiry. The practical importance of the subject is also obvious, especially at a time when western governments are having to reconsider their rationales for criminalization and sentencing in the light of substantial changes in criminal justice systems and their social contexts. Until recently, there was no journal solely devoted to the philosophy of crime and criminal law. Criminal Law and Philosophy fills this gap, and provides a platform for the high quality work that is being done in this area. High quality content; specific and inclusive in scope Criminal Law and Philosophy aims to publish high quality articles that take a philosophical perspective on any issues in the broad field of crime and punishment. The main areas and topics include: crime and criminalization; the content, principles and structure of substantive criminal law; criminal justice and the criminal process; punishment and sentencing. The journal is inclusive in its scope: it publishes articles with a historical focus on earlier philosophical discussions of crime and punishment, as well as articles with a more contemporary focus. It seeks contributions from a range of philosophical schools and approaches, in particular both from analytically oriented philosophers and from those who draw more on contemporary continental philoshophy. Readership Criminal Law and Philosophy is becoming essential reading for academics in philoso phy, in law and in criminology who take a philosophically informed critical, analytical or normative approach to the criminal law and criminal justice. It is also an important resource for students in those subjects, and for practitioners with an interest in philosophical approaches to their practice. Through this journal, readers can access the latest thinking by the best scholars in the philosophy of crime and punishment. Editorial Board The editors, editorial board and advisors constitute an impressive, international group of leading scholars working in the philosophy of crime and punishment. They represent a variety of systems of criminal law, including
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): LAW
Editor-in-chief Michelle MaddenPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 22, United Kingdom 22, Israel 4, Canada 3, Sweden 3 (60 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Free Will and AgencyNeuroscience22.5%
- War, Ethics, and JustificationArts and Humanities10.1%
- Criminal Justice and Corrections AnalysisSocial Sciences9.1%
- Political Philosophy and EthicsSocial Sciences6.8%
- Torture, Ethics, and LawSocial Sciences5.9%
- Law in Society and CultureSocial Sciences5.2%
- Philosophical Ethics and TheoryArts and Humanities4.8%
- Criminal Law and EvidenceSocial Sciences4.5%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Sociology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Law | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Law | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
ERIH PLUSPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 0.6Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 0.8Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 1.6LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.45LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.66LetPub ·
- h-index
- 37OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 193OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.66OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 0%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 54.87%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 36LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher)
- 2,025Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 269,600Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 810 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 28 | 15 | 0 |
| 2025 | 36 | 22 | 14 |
| 2024 | 35 | 21 | 51 |
| 2023 | 61 | 34 | 173 |
| 2022 | 28 | 14 | 61 |
| 2021 | 70 | 34 | 400 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with Crossref · to
208 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 63 days – 306 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 33 days (61 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 282 days
- Sample
- 40 articles with submission and acceptance dates (76 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Submission to first decision
- 16 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 3,090 / EUR 2,490 / GBP 2,190 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
Other charges and waivers (author guidelines)
- Colour charges
- Charged; see the journal's website for the amount
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare5 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–250 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 4
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 10,000 words
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
Article types accepted1
- editorialDouble-blind peer review This journal follows a double-blind reviewing procedure. This means that the author will remain anonymous to the reviewers throughout p…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review
- AI use Generative AI Images
Please check Springer’s policy on generative AI images and make sure your work adheres to the principles described therein. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Authorship principles
Manuscript submission implies the work is original, not published before, not under consideration elsewhere, and approved by all co-authors and responsible authorities. Model summary
These guidelines describe authorship principles and good authorship practices to which prospective authors should adhere to. Authorship clarified The Journal and Publisher assume all authors agreed with the content and that all gave explicit consent to submit and that they obtained consent from the responsible authorities at the institute/organization where the work has been carried out, before th…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Competing Interests
Authors must disclose financial or non-financial interests directly or indirectly related to the submitted work (competing interests). Model summary
Authors are requested to disclose interests that are directly or indirectly related to the work submitted for publication. Interests within the last 3 years of beginning the work (conducting the research and preparing the work for submission) should be reported. Interests outside the 3-year time frame must be disclosed if they could reasonably be perceived as influencing the submitted work. Disclo…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability
Authors must ensure all data, materials, software applications, or custom code support published claims and comply with field standards. Model summary
All authors are requested to make sure that all data and materials as well as software application or custom code support their published claims and comply with field standards.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics
The journal is a COPE member and follows COPE guidelines for dealing with potential acts of misconduct. Model summary
This journal is committed to upholding the integrity of the scientific record. As a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) the journal will follow the COPE guidelines on how to deal with potential acts of misconduct.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
Permission from copyright owners is required for previously published figures, tables, or text passages, with evidence included at submission. Model summary
Open Choice articles do not require transfer of copyright as the copyright remains with the author. In opting for open access, the author(s) agree to publish the article under a Creative Commons license. Details of the OA licences offered to authors can be found on the individual journal website, in the journal's How to publish with us guide. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access publishing
To find out more about publishing your work Open Access in Criminal Law and Philosophy, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Double-blind peer review
Double-blind peer review: authors remain anonymous to reviewers; manuscript and associated materials must be anonymized, with a separate title page containing author details. Model summary
This journal follows a double-blind reviewing procedure. This means that the author will remain anonymous to the reviewers throughout peer review. It is the responsibility of the author to anonymize the manuscript and any associated materials. Author names, affiliations and any other potentially identifying information should be removed from the manuscript text and any accompanying files (such as …
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Springer Nature
- Frequency
- 3 issues per year
- ISSN
- 1871-9791
- Electronic ISSN
- 1871-9805
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 20, Issue 2 (July 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Criminal Law and Philosophy
What CAS zone is Criminal Law and Philosophy in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Criminal Law and Philosophy is in Zone 3 of Sociology, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Law. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Sociology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Criminal Law and Philosophy?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 0.6 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 1.6, h-index 37.
How long does peer review take at Criminal Law and Philosophy?
Based on the dates recorded on 40 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 208 days (interquartile range 63–306 days). Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Criminal Law and Philosophy?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–250 words; Keywords: ≥ 4; Manuscript length: ≤ 10,000 words; Reference style: Author–date; Suggested reviewers: Optional. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Criminal Law and Philosophy based?
Of the 60 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (22), United Kingdom (22) and Israel (4). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Criminal Law and Philosophy?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Criminal Law and Philosophy is indexed in ESCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists ERIH PLUS; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Criminal Law and Philosophy open access, and what is the APC?
Criminal Law and Philosophy is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,090.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, Publisher website; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .