THAILAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Phatsawat Siwawej, Piyachon Jiraratmethakorn and Ketsirin Wisetwatcharawong, Weerawong C&P
Weerawong C&P 1 Park Silom Tower, 38th-39th Floor Convent Road Silom Bangrak Bangkok 10500 Thailand Tel: +662 264 8000 Email: info@weerawongcp.com Web: www.weerawongcp.com
1. General 1.1 Prevalence of Arbitration
Furthermore, increases in both international and domestic arbitrations are expected to be seen in Thailand. The backlog of cases, and the increasing number of disputes submitted to the Thai courts, have prompted some courts in Bangkok to actively promote and encourage parties to have their disputes resolved by in-court arbitration or so-called judicial arbitration under the Arbitration Rules of the TAI, Office of the Judiciary, since 1 May 2024. Although this form of arbitration has rarely been used in the past and is dif - ferent from that recognised under the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards 1958 (the “New York Convention”), the initia - tive would greatly improve Thai business awareness of arbitration and benefit the system of arbitration in Thailand as a whole. Domestic parties resort to international arbitration pre - dominantly for cross-border conflicts involving foreign entities and their affiliates – and where the contracts contain arbitration clauses. Furthermore, there is precedent in which the Thai court recognised the enforcement of the award rendered by a sole arbitrator in Singapore under Clause 5.3 of the SIAC Arbitration Rules 2016 (the “SIAC Arbitra - tion Rules”) regarding the expedited procedure, while the underlying arbitration agreement provided for a tribunal of three arbitrators. In that case, the arbitra - tion was conducted under the expedited procedure, which permits the appointment of a sole arbitrator. This demonstrates the binding effect of incorporating the SIAC Arbitration Rules into the arbitration agree -
Arbitration in Thailand continues to demonstrate a positive growth trajectory. Based on the statistics published by the major arbitral institutions in Thai - land, the number of arbitration cases has consist - ently increased year after year, reflecting the growing confidence of both domestic and international par - ties in arbitration as an effective dispute resolution mechanism. Looking ahead, this trend is expected to continue. Thailand has increasingly adopted investment-friendly policies aimed at attracting foreign investors. As for - eign investment increases, so too does the number of commercial contracts containing arbitration agree - ments; arbitration remains the preferred dispute reso - lution mechanism for cross-border transactions. Equally important, Thailand’s principal arbitral institu - tions, including the Thai Arbitration Institute (TAI) and the Thailand Arbitration Center (THAC), have become increasingly active in promoting their services in the international market through collaborations with over - seas institutions, international conferences and train - ing programmes. These initiatives have significantly enhanced the international profile and credibility of Thailand as a seat of arbitration, making Thai arbitral institutions more widely recognised by the global busi - ness and legal communities.
999 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook