Journal profile · LAW
European Law Journal
ISSN 1351-5993 · eISSN 1468-0386 · Wiley-Blackwell
European Law Journal: CAS Zone 3 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.19; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,570; review about 2 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); acceptance rate 11% (journal website); 19 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
European Law Journal is published by Wiley-Blackwell 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 European and International Law Studies, European Union Policy and Governance and European Criminal Justice and Data Protection, together about 51% of its articles. Its main subfields are Political Science and International Relations and Law. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The European Law Journal stands for the advancement of research on European integration through law in its multifaceted context, be it political, economic, historical, philosophical, social or cultural. It relies on a post-critical approach which aims to shed an original light on some puzzling issues while also providing an innovative conceptual framework in which to rethink problems and find new solutions.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): LAW
Editor-in-chief Karine CaunesPublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- European and International Law StudiesSocial Sciences22.1%
- European Union Policy and GovernanceSocial Sciences17.5%
- European Criminal Justice and Data ProtectionSocial Sciences11.3%
- Taxation and Legal IssuesBusiness, Management and Accounting4%
- Corporate Governance and LawBusiness, Management and Accounting4%
- International Arbitration and Investment LawBusiness, Management and Accounting4%
- Conflict of Laws and JurisdictionSocial Sciences3.7%
- EU Law and Policy AnalysisSocial Sciences3.4%
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 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Law | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Sociology Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Law | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
EBSCO, ProQuestPublisher website
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
- 1.19LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 1.3Publisher website ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.3Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.6LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 2.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 2.6Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.38LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.99LetPub ·
- h-index
- 91OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 584OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.36OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 0%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 68.92%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 20LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher) 2025
- 26Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 133,299Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,391 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 15 | 9 | 13 |
| 2025 | 19 | 12 | 10 |
| 2024 | 49 | 39 | 90 |
| 2023 | 25 | 19 | 102 |
| 2022 | 22 | 18 | 103 |
| 2021 | 36 | 20 | 395 |
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
Not usableThis publisher's "received" date is mostly when the revised manuscript arrived (37% of articles were "accepted" within 3 days), so it cannot measure review time
Figures by source
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 11%Publisher website ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher) 2025
- 11%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 89 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to first decision 2025
- 89 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance 2025
- 2 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication 2025
- 28 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 3,570 / EUR 3,000 / GBP 2,380 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
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 prepare3 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 100–150 words
- Keywords
- 5–6
- Reference style
- Author–date
Article types accepted3
- editorialThe European Law Journal welcomes contributions fitting the aims and scope of the journal. The European Law Journal stands for the advancement of research on Eu…Length not stated
- perspectiveThe European Law Journal welcomes contributions fitting the aims and scope of the journal. The European Law Journal stands for the advancement of research on Eu…Length not stated
- review articleReview ArticleLength not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteLicense & copyright, Peer review, Preprints
- License & copyright Copyright & Licensing
Creative Commons licensing Model summary
You may choose to publish under the terms of the journal’s standard copyright agreement, or Open Access under the terms of a Creative Commons License. Standard re-use and licensing rights vary by journal. Note that certain funders mandate a particular type of CC license be used. This journal uses the CC-BY/CC-BY-NC/CC-BY-NC-ND Creative Commons License. Self-Archiving Definitions and Policies: Note…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review
Double-blind peer review Model summary
The ELJ operates under a double-blind peer review model. Papers will only be sent to review if the Editor-in-Chief determines that the paper meets the appropriate quality and relevance requirements. Papers authored by Editors or Editorial Board members of the journal will be sent to reviewers unaffiliated with the author or institution and monitored carefully to ensure there is no peer review bias…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprint policy
Preprint policy Model summary
ELJ will consider for review articles previously available as preprints. You may also post the submitted version of a manuscript to a preprint server at any time. You are requested to update any pre-publication versions with a link to the final published article.
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
- Wiley-Blackwell
- ISSN
- 1351-5993
- Electronic ISSN
- 1468-0386
- Society / sponsor
- European Union
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 32, Issue 1 (April 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about European Law Journal
What CAS zone is European Law Journal in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, European Law Journal is in Zone 3 of Sociology, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Law. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Sociology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of European Law Journal?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.19; CiteScore 2.6, h-index 91.
How long does peer review take at European Law Journal?
The publisher reports about 2 days (submission to acceptance); the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 11% (2025). 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 European Law Journal?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 100–150 words; Keywords: 5–6; Reference style: Author–date. 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.
Which databases index European Law Journal?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, European Law Journal is indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Is European Law Journal open access, and what is the APC?
European Law Journal is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,570.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; 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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .