Journal profile · MEDICINE, LEGAL
Rechtsmedizin
ISSN 0937-9819 · eISSN 1434-5196 · Springer Medizin · GERMANY · Bimonthly · Founded 1997
Rechtsmedizin: CAS Zone 4 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 0.84; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,390; median 60 days to acceptance (33 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: easy; 76 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Rechtsmedizin is published by Springer Medizin and is in Zone 4 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Medical and Health Sciences Research, Autopsy Techniques and Outcomes and Restraint-Related Deaths, together about 34.7% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Zielsetzung der Zeitschrift Rechtsmedizin bietet Fachärzt*innen für Rechtsmedizin ein Forum zur wissenschaftlichen Information und kritischen Diskussion. Neben Beiträgen aus der Forensischen Pathologie und Traumatologie werden Arbeiten zu verkehrsmedizinischen, toxikologischen, serologischen, versicherungsmedizinischen, psychopathologischen und arztrechtlichen Themen publiziert. Praxisorientierte Übersichtsarbeiten greifen ausgewählte Themen auf und bieten den Lesenden eine Zusammenstellung aktueller Erkenntnisse aus allen Bereichen der Rechtsmedizin. Neben der Vermittlung von relevantem Hintergrundwissen liegt der Schwerpunkt dabei auf der Bewertung wissenschaftlicher Ergebnisse unter Berücksichtigung praktischer Erfahrung. Die Lesenden erhalten konkrete Handlungsempfehlungen. Frei eingereichte Originalien ermöglichen die Präsentation wichtiger klinischer Studien und dienen dem wissenschaftlichen Austausch. Kasuistiken beschreiben interessante und ungewöhnliche Fallbeispiele aus der Praxis. Beiträge der Rubrik 'CME Zertifizierte Fortbildung' bieten gesicherte Ergebnisse wissenschaftlicher Forschung und machen ärztliche Erfahrung für die tägliche Praxis nutzbar. Nach Lektüre der Beiträge können die Lesenden ihr erworbenes Wissen überprüfen und online CME-Punkte erhalten. Die Rubrik orientiert sich an der Weiterbildungsordnung des Fachgebiets. Aims & Scope Rechtsmedizin is an internationally recognized journal dealing with all aspects of forensic medicine. It provides information on current developments in forensic pathology, traumatology, traffic medicine, toxicology, serology, insurance medicine, psychopathology and legal medical issues. Freely submitted original papers allow the presentation of important clinical studies and serve scientific exchange. Case reports feature interesting and unique cases thus providing a platform for scientific information and critical discussion. Comprehensive reviews on a specific topical issue focus on providing evidenced based information on all aspects of the field. Review articles under the rubric 'Continuing Medical Education' present verified results of scientific research and their integration into daily practice. Review All articles of Rechtsmedizin are reviewed. Original papers and case reports undergo a peer review process. Declaration of Helsinki All manuscripts submitted for publication presenting results from studies on probands or patients must comply with the Declaration of Helsinki. Indexed in EMBASE and Sc
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): MEDICINE, LEGAL
Editor-in-chief Steffen HeidePublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named Germany 50, Japan 3, Switzerland 3, Austria 2, Romania 1 (59 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Medical and Health Sciences ResearchMedicine14.5%
- Autopsy Techniques and OutcomesMedicine10.9%
- Restraint-Related DeathsMedicine9.3%
- Genital Health and DiseaseMedicine6.9%
- Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology StudiesArts and Humanities5%
- Traumatic Ocular and Foreign Body InjuriesMedicine5%
- Forensic and Genetic ResearchBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.8%
- Clinical practice guidelines implementationMedicine4.6%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Medicine, Legal | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Medicine, Legal | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Medicine Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Medicine, Legal | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
EmbasePublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS, Semantic Scholar
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
- 0.84LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 0.9Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 0.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 0.8LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.19LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.49LetPub ·
- h-index
- 19LetPub ·
- h-index
- 30OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 216OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.63OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 33.3%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 75.17%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 57LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 318,600Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 2,140 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 52 | 29 | 3 |
| 2025 | 76 | 52 | 51 |
| 2024 | 82 | 33 | 78 |
| 2023 | 125 | 49 | 161 |
| 2022 | 50 | 36 | 63 |
| 2021 | 96 | 66 | 197 |
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
60 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 47 days – 90 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 35 days (81 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 111 days
- Sample
- 33 articles with submission and acceptance dates (141 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
- Average review time (community reports)
- 6–12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- EasyLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 4 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 3,390 / EUR 2,790 / GBP 2,390 | — | — |
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)
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteData availability, Open access
- Data availability Data availability statements
All original research must include a data availability statement. This statement should explain how to access data supporting the results and analysis in the article, including links/citations to publicly archived datasets analysed or generated during the study. Please see our full policy here. If it is not possible to share research data publicly, for instance when individual privacy could be com…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access publishing
To find out more about publishing your work Open Access in Rechtsmedizin, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
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 Medizin
- Country or region
- GERMANY
- Language
- German
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- Founded
- 1997
- ISSN
- 0937-9819
- Electronic ISSN
- 1434-5196
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 36, Issue 4 (August 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Rechtsmedizin
What CAS zone is Rechtsmedizin in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Rechtsmedizin is in Zone 4 of Medicine, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Medicine, Legal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Rechtsmedizin?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 0.84; CiteScore 0.8, h-index 30.
How long does peer review take at Rechtsmedizin?
Based on the dates recorded on 33 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 60 days (interquartile range 47–90 days); authors report an average review time of 6–12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Easy”. 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.
Where are the editorial board members of Rechtsmedizin based?
Of the 59 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Germany (50), Japan (3) and Switzerland (3). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Rechtsmedizin?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Rechtsmedizin is indexed in SCIE and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Embase; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Rechtsmedizin open access, and what is the APC?
Rechtsmedizin is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,390.
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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .