The first issue of the Collected Papers of the Faculty of Law in Novi Sad was published back in 1966. During the first fourteen years (until 1980) it was published annually together with several thematic issues (published between 1975-1979). Starting from 1981 and until 2011 the Collected Papers had three issues per year and from 2012 onwards, as well as in 1989 and 1990, was published with four issues per year. Since its inception the journal was published without any interruptions. So far, over 100 issues of the Collected Papers with over 2000 articles have been published. At this moment, the journal is in Serbia classified as a journal of category M51, i.e. as a leading journal of national importance.
The continuity and scientific quality of the Collected Papers is attributable to a great number of distinguished scholars who published their works in the journal. In addition to professors from the Faculty of Law in Novi Sad, a number of foreign and domestic scholars made their contributions to the journal. Prominent lawyers with different backgrounds and legal professions made their contributions to the journal. This wide pool of authors contributed to the great diversity of the content of the journal. Articles deal with a wide range of topics covering a variety of historical, theoretical and practical legal issues. Important contemporary issues related to environmental protection, security issues, integration processes feature in a number of contributions. National legal reforms and political and social changes have been timely covered in the journal. Comparative law covering legal systems of other countries – Anglo-Saxon, European-continental, countries in transition and many others – are also the subject-matter of papers published in the journal. A variety of authors have written about comparative and foreign law matters in different languages.
Regarding the design and form, all volumes have the title, tables of content and abstracts in foreign languages. Until 2004, the title was written both in Serbian and French (Recueil des Travaux). Since 2004, the title is in Serbian and English (Collected papers). Until 1990, the tables of content was available in French, English, German and Russian, and since 1990 in Serbian and English. Until 1997, the abstracts were translated into two of the four world languages, English, French, German or Russian. Since 1997, abstracts have been translated into English only.
Full text articles of the Collected Papers are available in different databases: EBSCO Academic Search Complete database and the American legal database HeinOnline(Law Journal Library/International & Non-U.S. Law Journals). In the EBSCO database, under the title Proceedings of Novi Sad Faculty of Law, there is the full text of the latest editions of the Proceedings, starting with Issue No. 3 from 2007. Since 2010 the full text of all issues of the journal, from the first to the latest, are available in the HeinOnline database. Data from these renowned global databases show a significant number of views and downloads of the journal’s articles, being accessed from libraries around the world, as well as a large number of citations (according to the Matica Srpska Reference Center). All content available on the website of the Faculty of Law in Novi Sad published since 2011 is open access.
During several decades of its existence, the Collected Papers had 12 editors-in-chief, professors of the Faculty of Law in Novi Sad. The current Editorial Board of the journal include distinguished professors of law faculties from France, Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, Thailand, etc.
Over the time new technological tools have been introduced to improve the submission and reviewing process. A special online system, Assistant, is used for submitting, reviewing and editing purposes. This system enables more efficient editing of the journal, technically facilitates the review of the manuscripts, and at the same time serves to improve the quality and increase the influence of the journal.
In 2016, the Collected Papers celebrated a respectable jubilee – 50 years of continuous publication. Its longevity was made possible by the Faculty of Law in Novi Sad, as an institution standing behind it with its authority, distinguished collaborators, the high scientific quality of published articles and the willingness to work seriously and selflessly on its publication. Thanks to that, the Collected Papers undoubtedly became one of the most important pillars of the Serbian legal science.