This is the first part of a two-part analysis of submissions to The British Accounting Review (BAR) over the decade spanning 1997–2006. In this part, we outline the journal review process, report on selected characteristics (country of origin, number of authors) of 657 submitted papers and report on the review process outcomes of these papers (including turnaround times). In part two of this analysis, we will investigate the characteristics of these papers that give insights into the way in which accounting and finance knowledge has developed over the decade (in particular, the topic area and methods of analysis used).