Comparative Law Researches

Comparative Law Researches

Rereading the Concept of Law as a Production Source of the Legal Rule in Thought of Mirza Malkam Khan

Document Type : Original Research

Authors
Parisa Assadi 1
Morteza Shahbazinia 2
1 Postdoctoral Researcher in History of Law, Faculty of Law, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
2 Associated Professor in Private Law, Faculty of Law, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
From the second half of the 19th century and in the early years of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar's reign, Mirza Malkam Khan introduced a new term into Iranian legal literature: "Law." But what Malkam Khan called "Law", is merely a verbal coincidence with the law as a source of modern jurisprudence and has fundamental differences. Therefore, elucidating the concept of law in his thought becomes even more crucial for distinguishing it from its contemporary meaning. The present study aims to examine the law constructed by Malkam Khan, on one hand, in light of the valid legal sources during the Qajar period, namely the royal decrees and sharia rules, and on the other hand, in comparison with the concept of law in modern French law. This study aims to show what transformation Malkam Khan sought to create in the existing legal sources by demanding a law, and what deficiencies in these sources led him to pursue a new source. The research, using an analytical-explanatory approach and a historical method, will demonstrate that Malkam Khan sought a law enacted by the government that would produce general legal rules. In his view, law is situated within the foundations of traditional law, and the use of the term law does not equal to "Rule of Law." His law is traditional in substance, and modern in form.


Keywords
Mirza Malkam Khan
History of Law
Traditional Law
Modern Law

Subjects

English
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