Conflict of interests
The following situations are considered conflicts and should be avoided:
·         Co-authoring publications with at least one of the authors in the past 3 years.
·         Being colleagues within the same section/department or similar organizational unit in the past 3 years
·         Supervising/having supervised the author (s)’ PhD thesis or being supervised/having been supervised by the author(s).
·         Receiving professional or personal benefits resulting from the review
·         Having a personal relationship (e.g. family, close friend) with the author(s)
·         Having a direct or indirect financial interest in the paper being reviewed

A complaint regarding potential conflict of interests of an editor will be referred to the supervising deputy editor, who will review the circumstances and send a written assessment of the complaint merits to the editor in chief. The editor in chief will make a final decision on managing the conflict and a written summary will be sent to Annals staff for keeping records.