9. Copyright Notice

Purpose

The Pakistan Journal of Gastroenterology (PJG) respects the intellectual property rights of authors while ensuring the lawful publication, dissemination, and long-term preservation of scholarly work. This Copyright Notice defines the ownership of published content, the rights granted to the Journal, and the rights retained by authors.

This policy is developed in accordance with the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ).

9.1 Copyright Ownership

Authors retain the copyright of their published work unless otherwise specified by the Journal's publishing agreement.

Submission of a manuscript does not transfer copyright ownership to the Journal.

Upon acceptance, authors grant the Journal a non-exclusive license to publish, reproduce, distribute, archive, and make the article permanently available through the Journal website and other recognized indexing and archiving services.

9.2 Author Rights

Authors retain the right to:

  • Reuse their work for educational and research purposes.
  • Share the published article with colleagues.
  • Deposit the published version in institutional or subject repositories.
  • Include the article in theses, dissertations, books, or academic portfolios with appropriate citation.
  • Present the published work at scientific meetings and conferences.
  • Use figures, tables, and illustrations from the article in future scholarly work, provided proper acknowledgment is given.

9.3 Rights Granted to the Journal

By accepting publication, authors grant the Journal the right to:

  • Publish the article in print and electronic formats.
  • Assign a Digital Object Identifier (DOI).
  • Archive the article in permanent digital repositories.
  • Distribute and preserve the published version.
  • Include the article in indexing and abstracting services.
  • Promote the published work through academic and scientific communication channels.

These rights are granted on a non-exclusive basis and do not affect the authors' copyright ownership.

9.4 Third-Party Copyright Material

Authors are responsible for obtaining written permission to reproduce any copyrighted material, including:

  • Figures
  • Tables
  • Images
  • Illustrations
  • Maps
  • Questionnaires
  • Supplementary material

Appropriate acknowledgment must be included in the manuscript wherever such material is used.

The Editorial Office may request copies of permission letters before publication.

9.5 Copyright Infringement

The Journal does not permit the publication of material that infringes the intellectual property rights of others.

If copyright infringement is identified before or after publication, the Journal may:

  • Suspend editorial processing.
  • Request corrections.
  • Remove infringing material where appropriate.
  • Retract the article.
  • Notify the relevant institution(s) or copyright holder(s).

Such cases will be handled in accordance with COPE guidance.

9.6 Repository and Self-Archiving

Authors are encouraged to deposit the published version of their article in:

  • Institutional repositories.
  • University repositories.
  • Government repositories.
  • Subject-specific repositories.
  • Personal academic webpages.

The deposited version should include appropriate citation to the Journal and the article DOI.

9.7 Copyright Statement in Published Articles

Each published article will include a copyright statement identifying:

  • The copyright holder.
  • The applicable publication license.
  • The Journal name.
  • The year of publication.

This ensures transparency regarding ownership and permitted reuse.

9.8 Policy Compliance

By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm that:

  • The work is original.
  • They own the copyright or have the legal authority to publish the material.
  • Necessary permissions have been obtained for all third-party copyrighted content.
  • Publication of the manuscript does not infringe the rights of any individual, institution, or publisher.

Failure to comply with this policy may result in manuscript rejection, withdrawal, correction, or retraction.

References

This policy has been developed in accordance with:

  • Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices.
  • International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) Recommendations.
  • Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) Principles of Transparency and Best Practice.
  • World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) – General Principles of Copyright.