National lands, as part of public wealth and intergenerational assets, lie at the intersection of natural resource protection policies, urban development, and land governance. The multiplicity of legal rules, the fragmentation of institutional competencies, and the increasing incorporation of national lands into urban boundaries have created significant challenges within the legal and administrative framework governing these lands in Iran. This study aims to examine the regulation of national lands in the face of legal conflicts and overlapping institutional jurisdictions and to analyze the legal implications of incorporating such lands into urban boundaries in light of judicial practice.
The research adopts a descriptive-analytical approach based on library research, analysis of statutes and regulations, and examination of decisions issued by the General Assembly of the Administrative Justice Court, unification rulings of the Supreme Court, and other relevant judicial precedents. The findings indicate that the principal challenge of the existing system lies in the absence of an integrated regulatory framework, fragmented institutional authority, and the lack of an effective mechanism for coordinating the rules governing natural resources, urban land, urban planning, and land registration. Consequently, judicial practice has assumed a compensatory and coordinating role in resolving conflicts and clarifying legal ambiguities.
The study further demonstrates that the incorporation of national lands into the urban boundary or urban fringe does not, in itself, terminate their national status or create private ownership rights. Any alteration in the legal status of such lands requires an independent legal basis and compliance with the procedures prescribed by law. The findings suggest that the transition from sectoral management to integrated regulation, the strengthening of institutional coordination, the completion of the cadastral system, and the enhancement of interpretative consistency in judicial practice are among the most important prerequisites for improving national land governance and reducing legal disputes in this field.