Editorial Guidelines
For contributors submitting articles to The Profession · Last updated: May 2026
About The Profession
The Profession is an independent digital platform for the Australian legal community. We publish original commentary, analysis, opinion, and insight from practitioners, academics, and thinkers across the Australian legal landscape. Our audience includes solicitors, barristers, in-house counsel, law students, legal academics, and professionals working adjacent to the law.
We are committed to publishing content that is rigorous, relevant, and genuinely useful to our readers. We maintain editorial independence from commercial relationships, and always declare when our editorial is promotional in nature.
Who we publish
We welcome submissions from:
- Practising solicitors and barristers (all jurisdictions)
- In-house counsel and corporate legal professionals
- Legal academics and researchers
- Law students and recent graduates (with appropriate framing)
- Professionals working in legal technology, legal operations, or adjacent fields
- Representatives of community legal centres, pro bono organisations, and access to justice initiatives
You do not need to be a well-known figure or senior practitioner to contribute. We are interested in perspectives at every level of the profession, provided the content is original, well-argued, and relevant to our audience.
What we publish
Content we welcome
- Opinion and commentary on legal developments, cases, legislation, or policy
- Analysis of significant court decisions or regulatory changes
- Practice insights — practical knowledge on specific areas of law or legal practice
- Perspectives on legal technology, legal operations, or innovation in the profession
- Career, professional development, and wellbeing content relevant to legal professionals
- Pro bono, access to justice, and community legal content
- Commentary on the culture, diversity, and future direction of the legal profession
- Promotional or advertorial content must always deliver a genuine benefit to our readership
Content we do not publish
- Content that constitutes, or could be construed as, legal advice
- Content that has been previously published, in whole or in part, in any publication, website, or other medium, without permission from the original author.
- Content that is defamatory, discriminatory, or in breach of professional conduct obligations
- Content that makes allegations against identifiable individuals without adequate substantiation
- Content generated entirely by artificial intelligence without meaningful human authorship, review, and editorial responsibility
AI-assisted writing: We understand that contributors may use AI tools to assist with drafting or editing. This is acceptable provided the author takes full editorial responsibility for the content, can verify its accuracy, and discloses AI assistance if it is material to the piece.
Format and length
Word count
Our preferred range is 600 to 1,200 words. Shorter pieces (400–599 words) may be considered as opinion notes. Longer pieces (1,200–2,000 words) may be considered for in-depth analysis. Pieces outside these ranges should be the exception and will be considered at editorial discretion.
Structure
- Open with a clear argument, hook, or statement of the issue. Do not bury the point.
- Develop your argument in the body with evidence, examples, or analysis.
- Conclude with a clear takeaway, recommendation, or forward-looking point. Do not simply restate the introduction.
- Use subheadings for pieces over 800 words to aid readability.
- Short paragraphs are preferred. Avoid paragraphs longer than five sentences.
Style and tone
- Write in clear, direct language. Avoid excessive legal jargon unless it is necessary and explained.
- Write for a practitioner audience that is intelligent and time-poor. Assume legal literacy but do not assume specialist knowledge outside your topic area.
- First person is acceptable and often preferred for opinion and commentary pieces.
- Avoid passive voice where possible.
- Australian English spelling and usage throughout (e.g. ‘organisation’, ‘recognised’, ‘colour’).
Citations and references
- Case names should follow standard Australian legal citation practice.
- Legislation should be cited with full title and jurisdiction on first reference.
- Where you reference external sources, statistics, or studies, include a reference or link. Unverified or unattributed claims may be queried or removed in editing.
- Hyperlinks are preferred over footnotes for online publication.
Legal advice disclaimer
All content published on The Profession is for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice. Contributors must ensure their piece cannot be reasonably construed as providing legal advice to readers. The Profession will publish a standard disclaimer alongside all contributor articles.
If your article is closely tied to a specific legal matter, fact pattern, or set of circumstances, consider whether it reads as advice to a person in that situation. If so, generalise or reframe before submitting.
Conflicts of interest
Contributors must disclose any conflicts of interest relevant to the subject matter of their article. This includes, but is not limited to:
- A financial or commercial interest in a matter, company, or organisation discussed in the article
- A professional involvement in related litigation or proceedings
- A personal or professional relationship with a subject or party discussed in the article
- Receipt of payment, sponsorship, or hospitality from a party relevant to the article's subject matter
Disclosed conflicts do not automatically disqualify a submission. Undisclosed conflicts that are later identified may result in correction, republication with disclosure, or removal of the article at The Profession's discretion.
The submission and review process
Submitting
Submit your article through the contributor portal at www.theprofession.au/contribute/submit. You will be asked to complete your author bio, upload a profile photo, and complete the submission form. Please read these guidelines in full before submitting.
Review timeline
Our editorial team will review your submission within 5 to 7 business days. We will contact you by email with one of the following outcomes:
- Accepted as submitted — your piece will be published or scheduled as agreed
- Accepted with revisions requested — we will provide specific feedback and ask you to revise before publication
- Declined — we will notify you by email. We do not always provide detailed feedback on declined submissions.
If you have not heard within 10 business days, you are welcome to follow up via editorial@theprofession.com.au.
Editing
The Profession reserves the right to edit submissions for clarity, length, accuracy, house style, and legal compliance. We will notify contributors of any substantive edits before publication. Minor edits (spelling, punctuation, formatting, subheadings) are made at editorial discretion without notification.
Republication
By submitting to The Profession, you confirm that the work is original and has not been published elsewhere unless otherwise declared and accepted for republication. Once published on The Profession, the article may not be republished in substantially the same form on another platform without our written consent. You retain copyright in your work and may refer to, quote from, or link to your published article freely.
Author bio and photo
Every published article includes an author byline.
In submitting a piece to our editorial, contributors must provide:
- Full name
- Professional title and organisation (if applicable)
- A short bio in the third person (150–200 words). This will appear beneath your published article.
- A professional headshot (JPEG or PNG, minimum 400×400px). Strongly recommended. Articles with author photos perform significantly better.
- LinkedIn and website links
Standard author byline includes the author's full name, professional title, and organisation (if applicable). Extended author bylines will become available to The Profession paid membership contributors, and will include a short bio, a profile photo, and links to the author's LinkedIn and website.
Contact
For editorial enquiries, contact us at editorial@theprofession.com.au.