Recognizing the Agent’s Authority to Engage in Self-Dealing as the Rule in Iranian Law and Islamic Fiqh

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Professor, Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran.

2 PhD Candidate in Private Law, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran.

3 Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran.

Abstract

Iranian law contains only limited rules on self-dealing and its effects. The permissibility of self-dealing as the default rule can be inferred from Article 198 of the Civil Code. The legal status of an agent's self-dealing, especially where the principal has not expressly authorized it but has granted the agent general or absolute authority to contract, is disputed in Islamic fiqh and Iranian law. General rules of transactions do not clearly settle the matter. Some scholars accept self-dealing only where the principal has expressly permitted it, while others maintain that an agent authorized to transact, even generally or absolutely, may contract with himself unless expressly prohibited. Using a descriptive-analytical method, this article argues that under the principles of contractual stability, freedom of will, and freedom of contract, the agent's self-dealing is effective unless a statutory or contractual prohibition exists. Restrictive rules should be treated as exceptional, interpreted narrowly, and should not be transformed into general principles.

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Main Subjects

References

 

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