Conceptual and Strategic Models for Rule of Law in the Islamic Republic of Iran

Rule of Law is one of the historical ideals of Iranians. The main goal of the Constitutional Movement in Iran was "Law". Intellectuals from various nationalistic and religious groups, as well as ordinary people, Looked at the idea of eradicating despotism and achieving progress, from the perspective of the "Rule of Law". "Rule of Law" has experienced many changes since Constitutional Movement up to now, "Constitution"- the spirit of Law- is considered as one of the major achievements of both the Constitutional Movement as well as Islamic Revolution. It is in the Constitution that the civil law, the public law, and the public international law is defined and established. Although the separation of powers and civil law are stipulated in the Constitution, the Rule of Law practically has been faced with serious challenges. We think if Iran has encountered impediments in its development path, it relates to country’s weaknesses and vulnerabilities in the realm of the Rule of Law and the legal system. The aim of this article is to achieve to a conceptual and strategic model for the Rule of Law in the Islamic Republic of Iran by taking advantage of the historical development of legal theories both in the West and in Iran as well as experiences of people in different societies reflected in the political science. Thus, we try to detect the weaknesses and challenges of establishing the idea of the Rule of Law from both theoretical and practical viewpoints so that we are able to overcome the challenges of the Rule of Law in Iran. This effort, we hope, may contribute to achieving Iran’s national progress and development plans