Journal of Legal Research

Journal of Legal Research

An Evaluation of Iran’s Legislative Responses to Selected Financial Crimes in Light of the Clinical Model

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Behzad Razavifard 1
Hossein Noormohammadi 2
1 Associate Professor, Department of Criminal Law and Criminology, Faculty of Law and Political Sciences, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran.
2 PhD Student in Criminal Law and Criminology, Faculty of Law and Political Science, Allameh Tabatabae'i University, Tehran, Iran.
10.48300/jlr.2024.470231.2699
Abstract
A substantial proportion of Iran’s prison population consists of individuals convicted of financial crimes, including theft and fraud. Several factors contribute to this problem, among them the ineffectiveness of the existing system of criminal sanctions. The clinical model of criminology proposes responses based on the offender’s dangerousness and provides criteria for assessing both dangerousness and the appropriate response. This article examines the extent to which Iran’s current legislative framework relies on clinical criteria in determining these two matters and considers the consequences of their application. The findings indicate that the assessment of dangerousness relies primarily on two criteria: the method of committing the offence and the persistence of offending within a specified period. Conversely, the absence of dangerousness is inferred from the lack of a legally significant criminal record and the application of a prescribed monetary threshold. These criteria, however, lack sufficient diagnostic reliability because they have been inadequately incorporated into legislation. For example, offenders with multiple previous convictions may not be classified as dangerous because their convictions do not constitute a legally significant criminal record. As regards criminal sanctions, although the legislation provides for certain alternative responses influenced by Lombroso’s classical clinical model, which emphasizes the exclusion of offenders, legislative priority is given to imprisonment and supplementary incapacitating measures. Consequently, shortcomings in assessing dangerousness and selecting proportionate responses may result in occasional offenders receiving custodial sentences while persistent offenders are subjected to rehabilitative measures.
Keywords
Legislative Responses
Clinical Model
Financial Crimes
Clinical Criteria
Dangerousness
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Journal of Legal Research
Volume 25, Issue 66
Summer 2026
Pages 171-201