PhD, Department Of Law, Baqir Al-Olum University, Qom, Iran
10.22091/lsic.2025.12743.1046
Abstract
Intellectual property (IP) is a pivotal regulatory mechanism for addressing knowledge market failures and ensuring distributive justice. Neglecting to protect creators leads to diminished incentives for innovation, technological stagnation, reliance on knowledge imports, and the weakening of the knowledge-based economy. However, restricting citizens' financial freedoms without solid jurisprudential foundations poses a serious challenge in Islamic jurisprudence. The study adopts a comparative analytical approach, drawing on Imami jurisprudential sources, the views of contemporary jurists, and various interpretations of the principle of "no harm" (la darrar) to analyze the role of the state in balancing individual and collective interests. The results demonstrate that the principle of "no harm"—through its two interpretations, "prohibiting harm" and "negating harmful rulings"—affirms the legitimacy of legal protection of IP at two levels: a lower level based on compensating the creator's direct costs, and a higher level aimed at achieving the public interest. Restricting the freedom to reproduce and commercialize intellectual works can be justified by the "societal harm" caused by scientific stagnation and the waste of national resources within the framework of this rule. Recognizing intellectual property as a tool for optimal resource allocation requires consistency with Islamic objectives. Furthermore, the duration of legal exclusivity must be determined proportionally to the costs of production and the extent of the harms mitigated by the rule, to avoid excess or negligence. In conclusion, the study demonstrates that the "no harm" rule—with its interpretative flexibility—is capable of establishing the legitimacy of the intellectual property system within the Islamic framework, provided its limits are carefully controlled through a careful balance between the creator's material rights, public access to knowledge, and the requirements of national development. This balance transforms intellectual property from a mere imitation of Western systems into a tool for achieving "Shari'a justice."
Hosseini Moraghi, Seyyed Mir Abdolfattah, (1416 AH), Jurisprudential Titles, Second Edition, Qom: Islamic Publishing Foundation.
Hekmatnia, Mahmoud, (1386 AH), Theoretical Foundations of Intellectual Property, First Edition, Tehran: Islamic Research and Development Publications.
Hekmatnia, Mahmoud, (Spring 1390 AH), "No Harm as a Theory in the Structure of the Jurisprudential and Legal System," Thesis on Research in the Field of Jurisprudence, Thirteenth Year, Issue 51, pp. 42-7.
Hali, Hasan ibn Yusuf (1423 AH), Tadhkirat al-Fuqaha (The Remembrance of the Jurists), First Edition, Qom: Aal al-Bayt Foundation for the Revival of Heritage.
Heydari, Sayyid Kamal (1379 AH), The Principle of No Harm nor Reciprocating Harm (From the Research of Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr), Qom: Dar al-Sadiqin.
Khamenei, Sayyid Ali (undated), Answers to Referendums, Website of the Office of the Supreme Leader.
Khomeini (Imam), Sayyid Ruhollah (1385 AH), Letters, Qom: Ismailian Foundation.
Khomeini (Imam), Sayyid Ruhollah (1409 AH), Tahrir al-Wasilah (The Liberation of the Wasilah), Tehran: Al-Ilmiyyah al-Islamiyyah.
Al-Khoei, Sayyid Abu al-Qasim (1407 AH), The Book of Hajj (The Book of Hajj), Qom: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah.
Rezai Rad, Abdul Hussein, "The Scope of Effectiveness of the Jurisprudential Principle of No Harm," Islamic Rights Journal, Issue 25, Summer 1389, pp. 63-89.
Sistani, Sayyid Ali (1414 AH), The Principle of No Harm and No Reciprocating Harm, Qom: Office of Ayatollah Sistani.
Sistani, Sayyid Ali (n.d.), Fatwas, Copyright, Website of the Office of Grand Ayatollah Sistani, at: "http://www.sistani.org/index.php?p=297396&id=447."
Shariat Isfahani, Fathallah ibn Muhammad Jawad (1407 AH), The Principle of No Harm and No Reciprocating Harm, edited by the Ahl al-Bayt Foundation, Beirut: Dar al-Adwaa.
Safi Golpayegani, Lotfallah (Autumn and Winter 1371), "Referendums and Opinions on New Issues in Jurisprudence and Law," Faslna-e Rahnmon, Nos. 2 and 3.
Al-Sadr, Sayyid Muhammad Baqir (1349), Our Economy, translated by A. Esbahbadi, Tehran: Islami Publications.
Al-Sadr, Sayyid Muhammad Baqir (1417 AH), Researches in the Science of Usul, edited by Mahmud Hashemi, second edition, Qom: Encyclopedia of Islamic Jurisprudence.
Al-Saduq, Muhammad ibn Ali (1404 AH), Man La Yahduruhu al-Faqih (Man La Yahduruhu al-Faqih), Beirut: Dar Saab and Dar al-Ta'aruf.
Abbaspour, Mahnaz (September and October 1377), “The Principle of No Harm,” Hikmat Sinavi (Mishkat al-Nur), Issue 6.
Al-Iraqi, Zia al-Din (1420 AH), Articles on Principles, Second Edition, Qom: Islamic Thought Academy.
Fazel Lankarani, Muhammad (Autumn and Winter 1371), “Referendums and Opinions on New Jurisprudential and Legal Issues,” Faslnameh Rahnamoon, Issues 2 and 3.
Muhaddith Nouri, Husayn (1408 AH), Mustadrak al-Wasa'il wa Mustanbat al-Masa'il, First Edition, Qom: Aal al-Bayt Foundation for the Revival of Heritage. 30. Mazinani, Mohammad Sadiq, "A View of the Principle of No Harm from Imam Khomeini's Perspective," Fiqh Magazine (New Research in Islamic Jurisprudence), Issues 21 and 22, Fall and Winter 1378, pp. 264-233.
Makarem Shirazi, Nasser (1411 AH), Fiqh Principles, Third Edition, Qom: Imam Amir al-Mu'minin (AS) School.
Makarem Shirazi, Nasser (Autumn and Winter 1371 AH), "Fatwas and Views on New Jurisprudential and Legal Issues," Faslnameh Rahnamoon, Issues 2 and 3.
Na'ini, Mohammad Hussein (1418 AH), Munyat al-Talib fi Sharh al-Makasib, Reported by Musa Najafi Khansari, Second Edition, Qom: Islamic Publishing Foundation.
Hashemi Shahroudi, Seyyed Ali (1420 AH), Studies in the Science of Usul al-Fiqh, First Edition, Qom: Encyclopedia of Islamic Jurisprudence.
Hedayat Nia, Farajullah (Autumn 1389), “The Jurisprudential Foundations for Restricting Financial Authority,” Islamic Law, Issue 26, Autumn 1389, pp. 137-164.
Hosseinisa, S. A. (2025). Maximum Level Of Protection For Intellectual Property In Light Of "No Harm Principle". Legal studies for Islamic countries, 2(2), 17-35. doi: 10.22091/lsic.2025.12743.1046
MLA
Sayyid Abbas Hosseinisa. "Maximum Level Of Protection For Intellectual Property In Light Of "No Harm Principle"". Legal studies for Islamic countries, 2, 2, 2025, 17-35. doi: 10.22091/lsic.2025.12743.1046
HARVARD
Hosseinisa, S. A. (2025). 'Maximum Level Of Protection For Intellectual Property In Light Of "No Harm Principle"', Legal studies for Islamic countries, 2(2), pp. 17-35. doi: 10.22091/lsic.2025.12743.1046
VANCOUVER
Hosseinisa, S. A. Maximum Level Of Protection For Intellectual Property In Light Of "No Harm Principle". Legal studies for Islamic countries, 2025; 2(2): 17-35. doi: 10.22091/lsic.2025.12743.1046
)
