Request and complaints procedure

This is the requests and complaints procedure referred to in the Editorial Statute.

Procedure for handling complaints submitted to Erasmus Magazine

a. A complaint or request must concern journalistic conduct or a publication by Erasmus Magazine.

b. Complaints about any other conduct by EM staff members are not handled under this complaints procedure. Such a complaint can be submitted to the Legal Procedures Department via legal.procedures.eur.nl.

c. Complaints or requests are initially dealt with by the member of the editorial staff involved. If this does not lead to the desired outcome for one or both parties, the handling of the complaint or request passes to the editor-in-chief. If this again does not lead to a satisfactory handling of the complaint or request, the editor-in-chief will refer the matter to the (complaints committee of the) Editorial Board.

d. In the event of a complaint or request concerning a publication or journalistic conduct between one or more persons and the editorial staff, the Editorial Board issues advice to the editor-in-chief, who may depart from this advice only with a statement of reasons and after consulting the Editorial Board on the matter. The decision of the editor-in-chief is notified to the submitter in writing, and the advice of the Editorial Board is enclosed with this decision.

Time limits

a. No limitation period applies to the submission of a complaint or request.

b. The editorial staff sends an acknowledgement of receipt of the complaint or request within two weeks.

c. The editorial staff must respond substantively to the complaint within six weeks, with the possibility of extending this response period once by six weeks. The parties will be notified of this extension in writing.

d. The decision of the editorial staff is notified to the complainant in writing.

e. Any amendments to the production are implemented as soon as possible, or in any case within 10 working days after this decision.

f. The complainant has six weeks to submit the complaint to the Editorial Board of EM after the decision has been communicated as described under d.

g. The Editorial Board confirms receipt of the complaint to the complainant within two weeks and, at each subsequent meeting, will consider the complaints or requests from the preceding period and issue advice on them to the editor-in-chief. The Editorial Board meets four times a year.

h. The Editorial Board issues advice on the complaint or request to the editor-in-chief. The decision of the editor-in-chief is communicated to the parties in writing no later than within six weeks, and the advice of the Editorial Board is enclosed with this decision.

Appeal

a. An appeal may be lodged with an appeals committee against the decision of the editor-in-chief to accept or not to accept the advice of the Editorial Board. The complainant has six weeks to lodge an appeal.

b. If necessary, the appeals committee is appointed ad hoc from a pool of experts and consists in any case of a legal expert and a student member. Its composition will be communicated to the parties concerned. The members are appointed for a period of two years, with the possibility of reappointment for a further period of two years, by the Executive Board. The director ABD is informed of this appointment.

c. The appeals committee consists of a chair and two members. The chair is not employed under the responsibility of the Executive Board and has no relationship with the editorial staff or the Editorial Board. Furthermore, the committee consists of at least one legal expert and one expert in the field of journalism.

d. The committee assesses the appeal and delivers its decision with due observance of the Editorial Statute and after having given the parties concerned the opportunity to be heard.

e. The committee only assesses whether the procedures in the preceding complaints procedures have been correctly followed, i.e. it does not concern a substantive assessment.

f. The committee hearings are public, unless the committee determines, at the reasoned request of one of the parties, that there are compelling grounds for holding the hearing in private.

g. The appeals committee delivers its decision within 10 weeks of receipt of the appeal. Postponement of this period is possible if all parties concerned agree to this extension.

h. The committee provides all parties concerned, the Executive Board and the director ABD with the decision in writing.

i. The committee decision is not binding.

Publication

If publications are amended following decisions by the editorial staff, the Editorial Board or the appeals committee, it is clearly indicated with the publications themselves what has been amended and, with due regard for the privacy of those involved, an explanation is provided.

In the event of any discrepancy between the Dutch and the English text, the Dutch text shall prevail.