www.wmitchell.eduI. Plagiarism Defined
For the purposes of this policy, plagiarism shall be defined by the William Mitchell College of Law Student Conduct Code. The William Mitchell College of Law Student Conduct Code defines plagiarism as:
[The] borrowing of an idea or lift[ing of] language from another source without giving full and accurate attribution by means of well-placed citations and, where there is a direct quote, accurate quotation marks. Not only direct quotes, but also paraphrased language, whether in text or footnotes, must be cited to the source . . . used. A citation must appear every time a source is used; a citation that appears in one place does not serve as a citation to later use of the source. Sources include not only published material, but also electronic sources, unpublished manuscripts, briefs, and the like.1
Plagiarism can result from unintended negligence as well as intentional misrepresentation of another’s work as one’s own.2 Plagiarism can take many forms, including, but not limited to:
- Not attributing an assertion of fact or law to its original source;
- Utilizing the language of another source without placing that language in quotation marks, unless the quotation contains fifty or more words, in which case the cited language must be indented and attributed to its source(s) without quotation marks;
- Lifting language from another source, even as few as two words, without quotation marks if the word choice is clearly recognizable as being attributable to another author;
- Quoting from another author who plagiarized or improperly cited another’s work (so-called “double plagiarism).3
In addition to the stated forms, plagiarism can result from borrowing the format or means of presenting a topic from a treatise or other source without attribution, even in the absence of borrowing direct language, argumentation, or reasoning from a source.
II. Plagiarism by staff members of the WMLR
Plagiarism is prohibited in all material prepared by students while participating on the William Mitchell Law Review (WMLR).4 Because of the serious nature of plagiarism and the unique responsibilities vested in the WMLR, every member of the WMLR staff shall take every step available to guard against plagiarism, including reporting any potential signs of plagiarism. Upon notice or signs of any form of plagiarism, staff members shall immediately notify the Editor or Assistant Editor in charge of the project. Similarly, editors shall immediately report any notices or allegations of plagiarism to the Editor-in-Chief. All incidents of reported or alleged plagiarism shall be kept confidential by the Editorial Board.
In the event of any allegation of plagiarism, the WMLR shall adhere to the following procedure:
A. Initial Steps
- Upon receiving an allegation of potential plagiarism, the Editor-in-Chief shall call a meeting of the WMLR Editorial Board.
- This meeting shall take place not more than ten days from initial notice to the Editor-in-Chief.
- Before the plagiarism meeting, the Editor-in-Chief shall redact the piece so as to maintain confidentiality for the alleged plagiarizer.
B. Board Meeting
- A quorum shall consist of at least fifty percent of the current Editorial Board. If a quorum is not present, the plagiarism meeting shall be postponed for twenty-four hours.
- The redacted material and the original piece alleged to have been plagiarized shall be made available for review by the Editorial Board.
- All discussion that occurs within the plagiarism meeting shall be protected by the duty of confidentiality, as outlined in the WMLR Constitution.
C. Action of the Board
- If at least two-thirds of the Editorial Board members agree that action by the board is appropriate, the allegation of plagiarism shall be forwarded to Vice Dean of the William Mitchell College of Law. The forwarding of a plagiarism allegation constitutes an official investigation, the results of which will be communicated to the Board of Law Examiners. Additionally, the student may be subject to discipline under the Student Conduct Code’s Rules of Procedure.
III. Plagiarism by Non-Student Authors and Non-WMCL Student Authors
Prior to publication in the WMLR, all authors shall sign an agreement stating the submitted material gives proper attribution to all sources used therein and that the author has not engaged in plagiarism. This agreement shall also expressly reserve the right of the WMCL to sue for damages incurred in the event plagiarism is discovered after publication. In the event that a member of the WMLR identifies a potential case of plagiarism, the material in question shall be reviewed by the Editorial Board in the same confidential procedure, as outlined above in section II. If at least two-thirds of the Editorial Board members agree that action is appropriate, the WMLR Editor-in-Chief and the presiding Faculty Advisor shall contemplate the necessary measure to be taken, including but not limited to legal recourse and redaction in subsequent Law Review publication(s). If the author is a student of a law school other than William Mitchell College of Law, the Board shall forward the material to the appropriate school official of the student’s own law school.
1 2003-2004 William Mitchell College of Law Student Handbook, p. 28.
2 See Lisa G. Lerman, Misattribution in Legal Scholarship: Plagiarism, Ghostwriting, and Authorship, 42 S. TEX. L. REV. 467, 467-68 (2001); Joe Mirarchi, Essay, Plagiarism: What is it? How to avoid it? And why?, 4 T.M. COOLEY J. PRAC. & CLINICAL L. 381, 383 (2001).
3 Mirarchi, supra note 2, at 384.
4 2003-2004 William Mitchell College of Law Student Handbook, p. 28. The plagiarism rule stated in the student handbook “applies to papers and documents written for courses, independent study projects, the long paper requirement, student competitions, research projects for faculty, articles for The Opinion, or any other college-related activity.” Id.