A Review of the Concept and Status of Trade Secrets under Intangible Property Rights and its Application in the Iranian Legal System

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Master's Student in Public Law, University of Judicial Sciences, Tehran, Iran

2 Teacher of private law, law faculty, university of Judicial sciences, Tehran, Iran

10.22091/diplic.2025.11735.1017

Abstract

Abstract
One of the weaknesses of the Iranian legal system is the divergence of opinions in the use of the term intellectual property and its examples, which is due to the lack of a unified and purposeful system in the field of various intangible properties. The disagreement among lawyers in the use of the concepts of intellectual property, spiritual property, industrial property and intangible property continues, and a precise solution has not yet been presented to resolve these disagreements by distinguishing these concepts and to eliminate the confusion among lawyers and owners of intangible or intellectual property by clarifying and organizing intellectual or intellectual property rights. The main issue is what is the updated concept of intangible property, intellectual property and trade secrets? And what are the effects and requirements on the Iranian legal system in differentiating between intangible property, intellectual property, using the doctrine of intangible property and using the updated concept of trade secrets? Intangible property is a broader concept than intellectual and industrial property, which includes both these cases and cases outside commercial law, such as the right to honest service. In fact, intellectual property can be considered one of the properties covered by intangible property law. With the development of new technologies and international trade, the importance of trade secrets has doubled, and with a proper understanding of trade secrets and their status, with a look at intangible property law, the most up-to-date legal findings and opinions should be applied in the development and education of trade secret law and also legislation in this area. The first point proposed in this area is that it is better to consider trade secrets as a third part of literary, artistic property and industrial property under intellectual property. Another issue is the focus of most intellectual and industrial property claims and other examples of intangible property, especially trade secrets, on commercial sanction and placing the aforementioned claims under the inherent jurisdiction of commercial courts, and the most important idea is to create local jurisdiction to handle intangible property claims in commercial courts of all provinces of Iran.


Keywords

Main Subjects

References

Imami, Seyed Hassan (1972). Civil Law. Volume 1, Islamieh Publishing.
Islam, Quest (2025). "Is Stealing from Websites Permissible?" Retrieved from https://www.islamquest.net/fa/archive/question/fa3689.
Bagheri, Mahmoud & Goudarzi, Maryam (2009). "Comparison of Trade Secret Protection System and Patent System." Legal Quarterly Journal, Issue 39.
Bina, Hossein Ali; Mohammadi Askar & Fahimi, Amir Hossein (2021). "Hudud or Ta'zir Punishment for Theft from an Electronic Wallet?" Retrieved from https://hawzahnews.com/xbyk9
Prizad, Mohammadi (2018). "Pledging Shares as Collateral." 3rd International Conference on Jurisprudence, Law, Advocacy, and Social Sciences.
Pilvar, Rahim (2015). "The Concept of Intellectual Property in Property Law and Its Position." Studies in Islamic Jurisprudence and Law, Volume 7, Issue 12.
Jafariyan, Rasoul (2021). Our Disease of Historical Distortion. Retrieved from https://khabaronline.ir/xgRHq
Javanmard, Leila & Rahpeyk, Siamak (2022). "The Right of Goodwill in Iranian Law with a Comparative Study in English Law." Biannual Journal of Comparative Legal Studies, Volume 9, Issue 2.
Institute of Training and Research in Economic Jurisprudence, Tayyabat (No date). "The Religious Verdict on Bitcoin According to the Jurisprudential Authorities." Retrieved from https://tyb.ir/?p=26766
IRIB News Agency, Islamic Republic of Iran (No date). "Capital Market Assets Become Bank Collateral." Retrieved from https://www.iribnews.ir/00EBCJ
Pilvar, Rahim (2015). "The Concept of Intellectual Property in Property Law and Its Position." Biannual Journal of Studies in Islamic Jurisprudence and Law, Volume 7.
Rostami, Hamidreza (2021). General Theory of Limiting Private Property by the State. (No publisher).
Rahbari, Ibrahim (2013). Trade Secrets Law. Tehran: Samt Publishing.
Shakri, Zahra (2015). "A Reading on the Limitation of the Scope of Trade Secrets; With Regard to the Defenses of Defendants in Violation Lawsuits." Quarterly Journal of Legal Research, Volume 18, Issue 70.
Shakri, Zahra & Habiba, Saeed (2015). "Sharing Literary and Artistic Works, Challenges and Opportunities." Biannual Scientific-Research Journal of Civil Law Studies, Volume 2, Issue 1.
Shaheed Sani (No date). Al-Rawdah al-Bahiyyah fi Sharh al-Lum'ah al-Dimashqiyyah. Al-Najaf al-Diniyah University, Islamic Thought Assembly.
Sheikhi, Maryam (2015). Principles of Intellectual Property Law. Volume 1, Tehran: Mizan Publishing.
Sadeghi, Mohsen (2010). "Comparative Study of Legal Proceedings in Trade Secrets Violations in the Digital Space." Business Research Journal, Issue 55.
Safai, Seyed Hossein (1996). Essays on Civil Law and Comparative Law, Literary and Artistic Ownership, and a Review of the Copyright Act. Tehran: Mizan Publishing.
Abbassian, Ezzatollah (2021). "Financial Assets." Encyclopedia of Economics, Volume 3, Issue 1.
Katouzian, Nasser (2005). Introduction to the Science of Law and Study of the Iranian Legal System. Tehran: Ganj Danesh Publishing.
Langroudi, Mohammad-Jafar Jafari (1977). Property Law. Volume 1, Tehran: Mash'al Azadi.
Mirhosseini, Seyed Hassan (2020). An Introduction to Intangible Property Law. 36, Tehran: Mizan Publishing. 
Mirshkari, Abbas & Maleki, Nafiseh (2022). "Legal Analysis of the Commodification of Fame." Media Publishing, Volume 127, Issue 33.
Mirmohammadsadeghi, Hossein (2020). Crimes Against Property and Ownership. Volume 1, Tehran: Mizan Publishing.
"Model Penal Code of the U.S." edited by American Law Institute: American Law Institute, 1985.
"Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property." Edited by WIPO, 1883.
"Uniform Trade Secret Act." 1985.
———. "Mail Fraud and the Intangible Rights Doctrine: Someone to Watch over Us." Harv. J. on Legis. 31 (1994): 153.
Beckerman-Roudo, Andrew. "The Problem with Intellectual Property Rights, Subject Matter Expansion." Yale Journal of law and technology (2010).
Carpenter Vs. United States (2018).
Cone, Geoffrey, Nicholas S Bjorklund, and Gregory C Dyekman. "Digital Assets and Property Rights in Insolvency." Trusts & Trustees 27, no. 5 (2021): 406-13.
Cooper, Gilead, QC. "Virtual Property: Trusts of Cryptocurrencies and Other Digital Assets." Trusts & Trustees 27, no. 7 (2021): 622-31.
Davis, jennifer. Intellectual Property Law. oxford university press, 2012.
Epstein, Richard A. "Trade Secrets as Private Property:Their Cinstitutional Protection." [In english]. law and economics working papers 190 (2003).
Friedman, David D., William M. Landes, and Richard A. Posner. "Some Economics of Trade Secret Law." Journal of Economic Perspectives 5, no. 1 (1991): 61-72.
Graves, Charles Tait. "Trade Secrets as Property: Theory and Consequences." [In english]. journal of intellectual Property Law 15 (1), no. 39 (2007).
Halligan, Mark, and Richard F Weyyand. "The Economic Valuation of Trade Secret Assets." [In english]. journal of internet law 9, no. 8 (2006).
International News Serv. V. Associated Press, (1918).
Kucherov, Samuel. "Property in the Soviet Union." [In Eglish]. The American Journal of Comparative Law (1962): 376-92.
Lemley, mark A. "The Surprising Vitues of Treating Trade Secrets as Ip Rights." law and economics working papers, no. 385 (2008).
Levasseur, Alain A. "The Boundaries of Property Rights: La Notion De Biens." The American Journal of Comparative Law 54, no. suppl_1 (2006): 145-65.
Mbl(USA) Corp. V. Diekman, (1983).
Moohr, Geraldine Szott. "Federal Criminal Fraud and the Development of Intangible Property Rights in Information." [In English]. U. Ill. L. Rev (2000): 683-739.
Nanayakkara, Gowri. "Immateriality and Materiality in Intellectual Property: An Indisputable Dichotomy or Essentially Entwined?". Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice 12, no. 5 (2017): 444-47.
Perryman, Syke Lynn. "Mail and Wire Fraud." [In English]. Am. Crim. L. Rev. 43 (2006): 715.
Redish, martin h., and kelsey b. Shust. "The Right of Publicity and the First Amendment; in the Modern Age of Commercial Speech." william & mary law review 56, no. 4 (2015).
Sappa, Cristiana. "How Data Protection Fits with the Algorithmic Society Via Two Intellectual Property Rights – a Comparative Analysis." Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice 14, no. 5 (2019): 407-18.
Skilling V. United States, (2010).
Tannenbaum, Brette. "Reframing the Right: Using Theories of Intangible Property to Target Honest Services Fraud after Skilling." [In English]. Colum. L. Rev. 112 (2012): 359.
Tripathi, Smriti. "Treating Trade Secrets as Property: A Jurisprudential Inquiry in Search of Coherency." Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice 11, no. 11 (2016): 841-45.
Insights of Intellectual Property Law in Islamic Countries
Volume 1, Issue 2 - Serial Number 2
September 2025
Pages 106-130

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics