Retrial Based on an Error of Law Under the Principle of Legality in Criminal Procedure

Abstract

The principle of legality in criminal procedure requires that, at the post-trial stage, the procedures governing extraordinary challenges to final judgments must themselves be established and regulated by law. Accordingly, the legal framework for addressing errors of law through retrial must be interpreted and implemented in a manner consistent with this fundamental principle, which is itself grounded in a number of subsidiary legal principles and rules. In this regard, Paragraph (c) of Article 474 of the Iranian Code of Criminal Procedure identifies a legal issue—namely, the non-criminal nature of the act—as a basis for judicial error resulting in a final conviction. However, this provision has created uncertainty regarding the application of the principle of legality to final judgments issued by certain judicial authorities, particularly the Supreme Court. This article therefore examines, through an analytical approach and by drawing upon the prevailing judicial practice of the chambers of the Supreme Court, the legal foundations for reopening criminal proceedings on the basis of such errors of law.