General

1. 1. On completion of candidate work, a postgraduate candidate proceeding to a Higher Degree shall submit the thesis to the Registrar, three copies of his thesis prepared in accordance with the rules regarding the format of the thesis set out in the guideline for evaluation.
   2. The candidate shall submit a thesis on the approved subject consisting of not more than fifty thousand words (50,000) for the MPhil thesis and eighty thousand words (80,000) for PhD thesis, excluding footnotes and bibliography within six months of the termination of the two-year or three-year period of registration respectively.
   3. In exceptional circumstances, an extension of time may be granted by the Senate on the recommendation of the Faculty Board after obtaining the recommendation of the Higher Degrees Committee.
   4. The candidate shall submit a thesis on an approved subject demonstrating a knowledge of the methods of research, evincing competence to systematically and exercise critical and independent and exhibiting lucid and scholarly presentation.

The thesis shall represent a significant and substantial contribution in the particular field of learning

Prior Notice of Submission of Thesis for Evaluation

At least four (04) months before a candidate is likely to submit their thesis to the University, they shall request their supervisor to notify the Registrar and the Dean of the Faculty of Law of their intention so as to enable them to make the required arrangements for the examination of the candidate.

Formatting Guidelines for Submission of Thesis for Evaluation

The thesis should be formatted as per the guidelines set below;

Document Format

• Use the standard A4 format for the thesis.
• Margins: Left – 40mm, Right – 25mm, Top – 25mm, Bottom – 25mm
• A title page giving the title of the thesis, the degree for which it is submitted, the name of the Faculty, the full name of the author and the date of submission of the degree.

Text Formatting

• Maintain a font size of 12 points for the main text.
• Utilize 1.5 spacing between lines in the main text.
• Footnotes should be in 10-point font with single spacing.
• Ensure both text and footnotes are justified.

Pagination

• Paginate the entire document, including notes, bibliographies, and annexes.
• The final thesis will be printed double-sided.
• Insert blank pages as needed to accommodate new chapters, sections, bibliography, etc

Language and Proofreading

• The language of the thesis should be meticulously proofread for accuracy and clarity.

Thesis Abstract

• Include a concise summary of the thesis, limited to 500 words.
• Include a list of keywords [ 4-7 keywords]

Statement of Original Authorship

The following declaration should be signed by the candidate

“I certify that this thesis does not incorporate without acknowledgement any material previously submitted for a Degree or Diploma in any University; and to the best of my knowledge and belief it does not contain any material previously published or written by another person or myself except where due reference is made in the text.”

Tables & Figures

• Incorporate tables within the text where feasible.
• Include comprehensive tables in an appendix or appendices.

Binding

• Hard binding, preferably blue

Label

• On the spine, use appropriately sized lettering.
• Include the candidate’s surname and the thesis title, abbreviated if necessary.
• If the lettering doesn’t fit across the spine, arrange it to read from top to bottom.

Publications

• When published papers are submitted as additional evidence they shall be bound at the back of the thesis as an appendix.

The thesis shall arrange in the following order

1. A title page;
2. Abstract;
3. Keywords;
4. Table of Contents;
5. List of Figures;
6. List of Tables;
7. Statement of Original Authorship;
8. Acknowledgement;
9. The main text;
10. Appendices, if any;
11. Table of statutes;
12. Table of cases;
13. Bibliography.

Submission of Thesis: 

For evaluation purposes, candidates are required to submit three hard copies to the Assistant Registrar University of Colombo overseeing Examinations with the supervisor’s endorsement. Additionally, a soft copy should be emailed by the supervisor directly to the aforementioned Examination Branch.

The Postgraduate Unit of the Faculty of Law, renowned for its prestigious status and diverse range of research programs, is steadfastly committed to elevating the standards of its research initiatives. In alignment with this commitment, the Faculty of Law adheres to a zero-tolerance policy on plagiarism. Candidates undertaking dissertations or theses are obligated to explicitly declare that their research complies with the plagiarism policy of both the Faculty of Law and the University of Colombo.

Candidates are required to be familiar with the most common type of plagiarism, procedure for handling plagiarism, responsibility and disciplinary code for candidates as set out in the Plagiarism Policy of the University of Colombo. Therefore, the candidates are expected to adhere to the University’s plagiarism policy, and in addition, they should ensure that similarity reports for academic work do not exceed 35%. Additionally, they are advised to exclude phrases up to three (03) words based on common phrases when using software tools for plagiarism checking, (i.e., “concept of stainable development”, and “beyond reasonable doubt’’ etc.) and bibliography/reference list.

Access to the Plagiarism Policies of the University of Colombo