For the exercise of a right, the legal capacity to act must exist . Bringing a case is an instance of exercising a right.; therefore, having such capacity is required for initiating a legal action. One essential condition of capacity is maturity (bulugh). Most jurists regard maturity as a prerequisite for the admissibility of a claim and hold that lawsuits—whether civil or criminal—filed by a minor are inadmissible. In property-related cases, the absence of legal incapacity due to prodigality (safah), meaning the possession of sound judgment (rushd), is also necessary. The Code of Civil Procedure does not independently define the conditions for hearing a lawsuit, but Clause 3 of Article 84 includes the plaintiff’s lack of capacity as a procedural bar, without distinguishing between pecuniary and non-pecuniary claims.
This research, using a descriptive–analytical approach, examines whether a minor may file a civil or criminal lawsuit under Iranian law. It concludes that a claim filed by a minor, even one close to maturity, is inadmissible. However, in Islamic jurisprudence, certain acts of discerning minor (saghir mumayyiz( are considered valid. When a discerning minor has been wronged and seeks justice before a judge (particularly in criminal matters), the judge is obliged to follow up the case. In this situation, the minor acts merely as an informant, not a plaintiff. in Articles 70 and 71 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which require the prosecutor to pursue the matter or appoint a temporary guardian to represent the minor.