A substantial portion of the editorial board of Communications in Algebra, a long‑running peer‑reviewed mathematics journal, has resigned in protest after the publisher revised its review policy and dismissed the editor‑in‑chief without advance consultation.
On March 10, 2026, 23 of the 31 members of the journal’s editorial board submitted formal letters of resignation to Taylor & Francis, which publishes the journal. The editors stated that the publisher introduced a requirement that each submission receive multiple full referee reports, a departure from customary practice in mathematics publishing. According to the board members, mathematical peer review typically involves detailed verification of results that can demand extensive time and specialized expertise. They argued that mandating two independent reviews for every paper, without broader community discussion, risked exhausting available referees or diluting review quality.
The resigning editors also expressed concern that the board was not consulted before top editorial leadership changes were enacted. In early March, Taylor & Francis informed the journal’s editor‑in‑chief, Scott Chapman of Sam Houston State University, that his contract would not be renewed. The board described this decision as opaque and said it was not involved in that process.
A math researcher and referee for several journals noted to Scholarly World that Communications in Algebra was not alone in facing difficulties related to peer review models and turnaround times. In mathematics, journals often balance thorough evaluation with the need to keep publication timelines reasonable, and editorial boards typically play a central role in those decisions.
Taylor & Francis has defended its policy change, stating that requiring at least two peer evaluations per article aligns with the standards it applies across its mathematics and statistics titles and supports research rigour. The publisher also said it is committed to maintaining research quality and integrity under the updated review process.
Communications in Algebra was established in 1974 and publishes research across various algebraic disciplines. Its editorial leadership and board have traditionally managed the peer review process for submissions in these specialised areas of mathematics.