Academic articles in the field of law

Foundations, structure, and guidelines for preparation

Abstract

This article analyzes the structural, methodological, and argumentative elements that characterize academic articles in the field of Law, seeking to understand how their proper preparation can help overcome recurrent weaknesses in legal academic writing. Its objective is to examine the theoretical, methodological, and ethical foundations of academic article writing, identifying its distinctive features and presenting guidelines for its preparation. The study is theoretical in nature and was conducted through a narrative literature review and a theoretical-reflective analysis of specialized works on scientific methodology, legal research, and academic writing. The findings show that common difficulties in legal academic production stem from the absence of clearly formulated research problems, the confusion between professional argumentation and academic investigation, insufficient methodological transparency, and poor structural organization. The study demonstrates that academic consistency depends on the articulation of the research problem, theoretical framework, methodology, analysis, and results, as well as on compliance with ethical principles related to authorship, plagiarism, and the responsible use of artificial intelligence. It concludes that academic writing is an essential dimension of knowledge production and that understanding the requirements that define an academic article contributes to improving research quality and strengthening Legal Sciences.