|
Abuse of the Right to File Criminal Complaints in Iran’s Criminal Justice System: Professional Complainants and a Balanced Response Model
|
Amir Golestanimoghadam1   , Mohammad Khani |
|
|
|
Abstract: (1 Views) |
Abstract
The right to file a criminal complaint is a core component of victim protection and access to justice. Yet, in exceptional cases, complaint mechanisms may be weaponized to harass, retaliate, obtain illegitimate advantages, or exhaust judicial resources. Iranian law does not recognize “professional complainant” as an autonomous criminal category; therefore, person-based labeling risks deterring legitimate victims. Using a descriptive-analytical and comparative method, this article reframes the issue as abuse of the right to complain and examines Iranian law alongside selected common-law approaches to vexatious litigation and abuse of process. The study finds that repeated complaints, acquittals, or dismissals cannot by themselves establish abuse. Relevant indicators should instead include knowledge of falsity, improper purpose, fabrication or manipulation of evidence, repeated proceedings arising from substantially identical facts, and disproportionate burdens imposed on defendants and judicial institutions. Iranian law contains fragmented responses through constitutional guarantees, criminal procedure rules, defamation-related offences, and the civil-law model of security against vexatious claims, but lacks an integrated criminal-justice management framework. The article proposes a graduated model: early issue-based assessment, privacy-protective linkage of related cases, effective prosecution of fabricated evidence, civil compensation for proven direct loss, and only in exceptional cases narrowly tailored, reviewable filing restrictions. Such a model protects genuine access to justice while preventing the criminal process from becoming an instrument of coercion.
Keywords: Right to Complain; Abuse of Process; Vexatious Litigants; Criminal Justice; False Accusation; Access to Justice
|
Article number: 7 |
| Keywords: Right to Complain, Abuse of Process, Vexatious Litigants, Criminal Justice, False Accusation, Access to Justice |
|
|
Full-Text [DOCX 62 kb]
(1 Downloads)
|
Type of Study: Research |
Subject:
Special
Received: 2026/09/1 | Accepted: 2026/09/3 | Published: 2026/09/3
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Send email to the article author |
|
|
|
| Add your comments about this article |
|
|
|
.png)
