AHLA Publication Guidelines for Authors

1. Introduction and Scope

American Health Law Association has a strong reputation for producing high quality publications and educational programs. These publication guidelines are designed to assist all authors of written materials in developing content that meets AHLA’s publication standards. These guidelines apply to all AHLA publications and educational content (including all forms of media) unless specifically excluded in this policy.

For questions or requests to vary from these guidelines, please contact the AHLA staff person in charge of the relevant publication or educational event.

2. Fair and Balanced Approach

AHLA strives to maintain readership and membership across the widest possible range of viewpoints involved in health law. AHLA’s publications should each maintain a fair and balanced approach to all issues, and set forth the arguments on both sides. Authors should also avoid partisan phrases and inflammatory language.

To maintain the appearance of impartiality, AHLA may refuse to publish content written by an author who represents or is party in a judicial, administrative or legislative proceeding that is the primary subject matter of the article. When proposing a topic or at the very latest, when submitting a manuscript, an author must reveal to AHLA staff if he represents or is a party in a judicial, administrative or legislative proceeding that is the primary focus of the article. Authors should also disclose to AHLA if they or their employer have received or will receive any remuneration for writing the manuscript.

AHLA may refuse to publish content that does not comply with these standards. As an alternative, AHLA may publish an advocacy article that takes the opposite view.

Authors may not comment on identifiable vendors, services or products. The manuscript itself should not contain any material that could be perceived as promoting or marketing a particular firm, company, product or service. AHLA will not publish articles that discuss identifiable vendors, services or products or that could be perceived as promoting a particular firm, company, product or service.

3. Plagiarism Policy

It is critical that AHLA authors provide proper attribution of all sources in order to avoid plagiarism in AHLA publications. Accordingly, authors submitting manuscript should provide accurate citations for all portions of the manuscript that are not the author's own opinions or ideas, giving appropriate credit to the sources of information used. Any author with questions about the attribution required should contact the editor of the publication.

The copyright license form that each author is required to sign requires the author to confirm that the material submitted has been prepared in accordance with these guidelines, including its plagiarism policy. The author will be responsible for compliance with these guidelines for anyone assisting the author with preparation of the publication.

Any concerns about whether plagiarism has occurred should be referred to the Executive Vice President/Chief Executive Officer of AHLA to determine whether further action in accordance with AHLA policy is necessary. AHLA will endeavor to handle allegations of plagiarism in a confidential manner.

4. Content and Editing Standards

a. Quality and Accuracy

• Each author is responsible for the substance and accuracy of her manuscript, including the accuracy of citations. The lead author or editor in chief is also responsible for the substance and accuracy of material prepared by any person assisting the author. Manuscript should be well-written and clear, and should have an introduction and conclusion.
• All submissions are subject to editorial review before being accepted for publication, and selection or rejection of any manuscript or other material remains in AHLA’s sole discretion. Authors should respond promptly to comments from AHLA staff and peer editors (if applicable), including rewriting as appropriate. AHLA reserves the right to refuse to publish or require that certain edits be incorporated into the manuscript before it is published.

b. Manuscript Preparation

Each AHLA publication has its own editorial practices and procedures for recruiting authors, reviewing content, as well as copyright assignment. Word count restrictions, length of biographical references, and schedules also vary for each publication. Before beginning to write, please check with the AHLA department or staff member in charge of that publication for the specific rules and standards that apply to the manuscript.

Generally, AHLA has a number of practices and guidelines that all authors should follow. They are enumerated below.

1. Submit manuscript in electronic format, preferably Microsoft Word, without any auto-formatting or letterhead.
2. Follow the rules in the AHLA Editorial Style Guide for spelling and punctuation. (See Appendix A).
3. Use the active voice wherever feasible.
4. Limit manuscript to the applicable page limit, double-spaced in 12-point type, including footnotes/endnotes and exhibits.
5. Paginate the manuscript.
6. Provide complete references throughout the manuscript using footnotes or endnotes as required by the particular publication.
7. Number footnotes/endnotes consecutively, from the beginning of the manuscript to the end.
8. Conform citations to the current edition of The Blue Book: A Uniform System of Citation (See Appendix B for examples).
9.  Include the text of the manuscript and footnotes/endnotes in a single file.
10. Include the files for all practice tools, such as sample contract, policies, checklists and forms, figures, diagrams, tables, exhibits, and/or appendices and identify the location of all of these materials in the text of the manuscript.
11. When submitting the manuscript, each author should indicate how the author’s name, affiliation, and contact information should appear, as well as provide any biographical information to include in accordance with the formatting rules for the relevant publication.
12. Sign and return the appropriate copyright license to AHLA before the material is published in any form. If an author’s law firm or employer owns the copyright, the author is responsible for having an appropriate representative of the firm or employer also sign the form.

Appendix A: AHLA Editorial Style Guide

1. General Style Commentary

1.1 Abbreviations

Use Blue Book abbreviations in legal citations for case names, court names, court documents, explanatory phrases, geographical terms, judges and officials, and months.

When references to cities and states appear in narrative passages, or when a member of the U.S. Congress is identified, use the two-letter ZIP Code as a reference for the state. For example,

The case involved actions at a Knoxville, TN, hospital.

The federal physician self-referral prohibitions often are referred to by the name of their initial sponsor, Congressman Pete Stark (D-CA).

Write out the state name when used without the city.

1.2 Acronyms

In general, all acronyms (including those that are familiar, such as HMO) need to be spelled out the first time they appear, except in article titles if the term represented by the acronym is wordy and its meaning is commonly understood. Set off the acronym, without quotation marks, in parentheses following the term it is defining. Do not use an acronym if the term it abbreviates appears only once in the text. When an acronym is used in plural form, add s without an apostrophe, unless possessive.

Example: The Office of Inspector General’s (OIG’s) statement about health maintenance organizations (HMOs) was released last week.

1.3 Comma

AHLA style requires the use of the serial comma to separate the penultimate and ultimate elements in a sequence. For example,

The author would like to acknowledge and thank her parents, Ayn Rand, and God.

When relating full dates in a sentence, a comma should not be used after the year when the sentence continues thereafter. For example,

The January 31, 2002 proclamation had the effect…

1.4 Dashes: Em, En, Hyphen

An em dash (“—”) indicates a major interruption or an abrupt change of thought in a sentence. If the change were less abrupt, the em dash usually could be replaced with a comma or parentheses. The em dash also shows that a further explanation is coming or introduces a list.

The en dash (“–”) is one half the length of an em dash and is longer than a hyphen. It represents the word “to” or “through” between two numerical elements—dates, time, or reference numbers (e.g., 1968–1972, 10:00–10:15, pp. 38–45) and marks the division between a numbered or lettered category and its numbered or lettered subcategory. The en dash is also used in place of a hyphen in a compound adjective when one element consists of two or more words or a hyphenated word (e.g., post–Civil War period, New York–London flight).

A hyphen (“-”) divides a word at the end of a line and joins the elements of a compound word.

Do not insert spaces before or after an em dash, en dash, or hyphen.

An em dash and en dash may be inserted in Word by selecting Insert/Symbol/Special Characters. In addition, in Word, typing two dashes between two words (without spaces) automatically inserts an em dash. Shortcut keys also may be assigned to em dashes and en dashes by opening the Insert/Symbol/Special Characters dialogue box.

1.5 “e.g.” vs. “i.e.”

The abbreviation “e.g.” means “for example;” the abbreviation “i.e.” is synonymous with “that is to say.” A common mistake is to consider the two to mean the same thing.

1.6 Endnotes/Footnotes

AHLA style uses footnotes in non-dues publications and the Journal of Health and Life Sciences Law, and Practice Group Member Briefings. AHLA uses endnotes in AHLA Connections, Health Lawyers Weekly, and Practice Group newsletters. Endnotes/footnotes providing legal citation should follow the standard Blue Book format. Other points to follow in formatting endnotes/footnotes include the following.

• Full case names should be used upon first appearance in the endnotes/footnotes; subsequent references may use a unique short-cite case name. Use of electronic reporters (i.e. Westlaw and LEXIS) in case name citations should be avoided if possible. (Example, United States ex rel. Luke v. Smith, 245 F. Supp. 2d (S.D.N.Y. 2003)).

• Names of constitutions and statutes are given in large and small capital letters.

(VA. CODE ANN. § 7; U.S. CONST. ART. I, § 7).

• Book author names, book titles, and periodical titles are also in large and small capital letters. (CHARLES ALAN WRIGHT, FEDERAL PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE § 1006 (2d ed. 1987); Jane Gross, Silent Right: Lawyer Defends Ethical Principles, CHI. TRIB., Mar. 3, 2012, at 2).

• Supra, infra, and id. are italicized. (See supra note 2, at 4).

Outside of these considerations, some style differences exist between non-dues publications and other AHLA publications due to space requirements and other considerations.

1.7 Foreign Words

Italicize foreign words or phrases that have not been incorporated into common English usage. For example, italicize the following: ex rel., In re, et seq.).Do not italicize the following: e.g., i.e., quid pro quo, res judicata, qui tam, res ipsa (Note: e.g. is italicized when used as an introductory signal in a citation (E.g. or See, e.g.,)) (Note: e.g. and i.e. are italicized in non-dues publications).

1.8 Gender Designations

Do not use he or she and his or her or shortcuts such as his/her or s/he. If possible, change the initial noun from singular to plural or simply use either he or she (but not both).

1.9 Headings

In titles and first-level headings, capitalize the initial word, the word immediately following a colon, and all other words except articles, conjunctions, and prepositions of four or fewer letters. In general, second-level headings and beyond also follow the same rule regarding capitalization but will be formatted differently to distinguish their hierarchy. This rule may vary, however, depending on the publication.

1.10 Numbers

Spell out the numbers zero through ten. Use numerals for all numbers above ten except if the number begins a sentence.

When a series includes one or more numerals under this rule, numerals should be used for the entire series (e.g., “They burned, respectively, 117, 3, and 15 homes.”).

Numerals should be used if the number includes a percent or dollar sign or decimal point (e.g., 5%, $6 million, 23.6%).

Numerals should be used for section or other subdivision numbers.

1.11 Parentheses

No punctuation should precede a parenthetical phrase within a sentence; any punctuation required is placed immediately after the closing parenthesis. Do not use quotations around acronyms placed in parentheses after the terms they are defining.

1.12 Personal/Firm Names

AHLA does not use commas in personal names (e.g., Charlie Brown Jr. or Joe Cool III). AHLA also does not use commas or periods in firm names (e.g. Hall Render Killian & Lyman PC).

The professional credentials of authors/speakers should not be included after their names unless the article/presentation involves a multi-disciplinary team and making this distinction for each author/speaker would be helpful. In all cases, speaker/author professional credentials may be noted in their bios or in the first footnote/endnote. In instances where it is appropriate to list the professional credentials of an attorney under this standard, ‘JD’ should be used, not ‘Esquire’.

1.13 Quotations/Quotation Marks

Follow Blue Book for specific use of quotations for indentation, citation, and punctuation.

Quotations of fifty or more words should be indented left and right without quotation marks. Quotation marks within a block quotation should appear as they do in the original. In law review footnotes, court documents, and legal memoranda (in which citations are permitted), the citation should not be indented but should begin at the left margin on the line immediately following the quotation. In law review text (in which citations are not permitted), the footnote number should appear after the final punctuation of the quotation.

Quotations of forty-nine or fewer words should be enclosed in quotation marks, but not otherwise set off from the rest of the text. Quotation marks around material quoted inside another quote should appear as single marks within the quotation in keeping with the standard convention. The footnote number or citation should follow immediately after the closing quotation mark unless it is more convenient to place it elsewhere shortly before or after the quotation. Always place commas and periods inside the quotation marks; place other punctuation marks inside the quotation marks only if they are part of the material quoted. When the material quoted would commonly be set off from the text, such as lines of poetry or dialogue from a play, the quotation may appear as a block quote, regardless of length.

When a letter must be changed from upper to lower case (or vice versa), enclose it in brackets. Substituted words or letters and other inserted material should also be bracketed.

Example: “[P]ublic confidence in the [adversary] system depend[s upon] full disclosure of all the facts.”

Indicate the omission of letters with empty brackets (e.g., “judgment[]”). Significant mistakes in the original should be followed by “[sic]” and otherwise left as they appear in the original.

Indicate in a parenthetical clause after the citation any change of emphasis or omission of citations or footnote numbers (e.g., (Emphasis in the original.)). Do not indicate the omission of a citation or footnote number that follows the last word quoted.

1.14 Small Caps

Follow Blue Book style. Large and small caps (e.g., “LARGE AND SMALL CAPS”) are used in legal citations to denote author, book titles, periodical titles, and A.M. and P.M. designations.

2. Clarifications

The following list clarifies some commonly asked questions about how certain words should be spelled.

copayment ............................ no hyphen

credentialing ....................... 1 L

decision making/maker.. no hyphen/2 words (unless required for clarity)

Diagnosis Related Group DRG

end of life................................ no hyphens

Editor in Chief ..................... no hyphens

email ........................................ no hyphen

health care............................. always two words (unless directly quoting a source using it as one word)

kicked off ............................... no hyphen/2 words

kickoff ..................................... one word (unless quoting a source hyphenating/using as two)

long term................................ no hyphen

nonprofit ............................... no hyphen

payers...................................... not “payors”

policy makers....................... no hyphen/2 words (unless quoting a source doing otherwise)

preempt.................................. no hyphen

principal.................................. use when reference is to a person; principal in firm

principle.................................. use when intended meaning is “ideal”

rulemaking............................ one word; “rulemaking”

short term.............................. no hyphen

tax-exempt............................ hyphen when used as adjective

website.................................... one word, no capitalization

Year In Review..................... Do not put hyphen in between words

Appendix B

Sample Citations from The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation

Supreme Court Case:

Baker v. General Motors Corp., 522 U.S. 222, 228 (1998).

Federal Court of Appeals Case:

In re Equip. Servs., Inc., 290 F.2d 739 (4th Cir. 2002), aff'd sub nom., Lamie v. U.S. Trustee, 124 S. Ct. 1023 (2004).

Federal District Court Case (published):

Phillips v. Pembroke Real Estate, Inc., 288 F. Supp. 2d 89 (D. Mass. 2003).

State High Court Case:

Wesson v. Leone Enters., Inc., 774 N.E.2d 611 (Mass. 2002).

State Appeals Court Case:

Korper v. Weinstein, 783 N.E.2d 877 (Mass. App. Ct. 2003).

Electronic Cite:

Machado v. Leahy, No. BRCV200200514 (Mass. Super. Jan. 3, 2004).

United States Constitution:

U.S. Const. art. III, § 2.

United States Constitution (Amendment):

U.S. Const. amend. XX, § 4.

State Constitution:

Mass. Const. pt. 1, art. XII.

Federal Code:

42 U.S.C. §§ 12101-12213.
Note: Include year for codified statutes and regulations only if referring to historical version rather than current version.

Federal Code (name and section number):

Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act of 1980 § 3, 42 U.S.C. § 1997a.

Federal Session Law:

Magnuson-Moss Warranty-Federal Trade Commission Improvement Act (Lemon Law), Pub. L. No. 93-637, 88 Stat. 2183 (codified at 15 U.S.C. §§ 2301-2312).

Internal Revenue Code:

I.R.C. § 162.

State Code:

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 93A, § 105.

Federal Bill:

Can-Spam Act of 2003, S. 877, 108th Cong. § 3 (2003).

Federal Report:

H.R. Rep. No. 99-226, at 8 (1985), reprinted in 1985 U.S.C.C.A.N. 278, 289

State Bill:

H.R. 344, 183rd Gen. Ct. (Mass. 2003).

Executive Orders:

Exec. Order No. 13,083, 3 C.F.R. 137 (1998).

Federal Regulation (in Code of Federal Regulations):

FEC Sunshine Regulations, 11 C.F.R. § 2.

Federal Regulation (specific section and subsection in Code of Federal Regulations):

8 C.F.R. § 240.58(b).

Treasury Regulations:

Treas. Reg. § 1.170A-6.

Federal Register Citation (Final Regulation):

H.I.P.A.A. Enforcement Rule, 68 Fed. Reg. 18,895 (April 17, 2003) (to be codified at 45 C.F.R. pt. 160).

Federal Register Citation (Proposed Rule):

Department of Homeland Security Human Resources Management System, 69 Fed. Reg. 8,029 (proposed February 20, 2004) (to be codified at 5 C.F.R. pt. 9701).

Administrative Decisions:

Albertson's, Inc., 332 N.L.R.B. 1132 (2000).

Tax Court Decisions:

Fono v. Commissioner, 79 T.C. 680 (1982).

Revenue Rulings:

Rev. Rul. 95-55, 1995-2 C.B. 313.