Modern Jurisprudence and Law

Modern Jurisprudence and Law

Challenges to the rule of law in imposing taxes by municipalities by studying the opinions of the Administrative Court of Justice

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Law, Public Law, Tabriz Azad University, Tabriz, Iran
10.22034/jml.2025.725192
Abstract
The rule of law, as one of the fundamental principles of the legal system, guarantees the legitimacy and validity of decisions and actions of public institutions, including municipalities. However, an examination of the opinions of the Administrative Court of Justice shows that the imposition of taxes by municipalities in many cases is outside the scope of legal jurisdiction and has led to the violation of the acquired rights of citizens. Some of these opinions concern the imposition of taxes without explicit legal authorization, the repetition of similar taxes under different titles, and the failure to comply with the criteria for approving and announcing local regulations. From the analysis of these opinions, it can be concluded that the existing challenges are mainly due to the lack of transparency in upstream laws, the municipalities' broad interpretation of their powers, and the weakness of effective supervision of the approvals of Islamic city councils. To address these challenges, it seems necessary to amend legal regulations, review the supervisory procedures of the Administrative Court of Justice, and strengthen the institutions supervising the process of approving and implementing urban taxes. This article attempts to provide solutions to strengthen the principle of the rule of law in the field of urban taxes by focusing on judicial practice.
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