THAILAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Chusert Supasitthumrong, John Frangos, Alongkorn Tongmee and Eric Meyer, Tilleke & Gibbins
3.7 Representative or Collective Actions Thailand permits representative or collective actions in the form of class actions. Any claims under the Civil Procedure Code may be filed as class actions as long as certain specific conditions are satisfied. These pro- visions include the following: • Commonality: The plaintiff has shown adequately clear common characteristics of the identifiable class of persons. • Numerosity: Such class of persons has a large number of members, which would cause difficulty and inconvenience in conducting ordinary pro- ceedings. • Superiority: Class-action proceedings will be fairer and more efficient than ordinary proceedings. • Typicality: The plaintiff has shown that the plaintiff is a qualified class member with claims typical of the class and that the lawyer nominated by the plaintiff is able to carry out the proceedings to adequately and fairly protect the rights of the class. The Civil Procedure Code provides a partial list of the kinds of claims that can be filed as class actions. These include tort claims, claims arising from con- tract breaches, and claims pertaining to particular laws such as consumer protection, labour, securities, trade competition and environmental laws. A motion to proceed with a case as a class action must be filed with the competent court, together with the underlying complaint. The class-action motion must demonstrate that the dispute meets the require- ments listed above. Any potential class member who wishes to file a sepa- rate lawsuit or does not wish to be bound by the judg- ment of the class action can opt out of the class. To do so, the individual must notify the court in writing of his or her intention to withdraw from class membership within the time period specified by the court. A person who has opted out from being a member of a class cannot apply to opt back in and cannot inter- plead as a joint plaintiff in the class action. However, such person has the right to pursue individual claims.
for the complaint’s delivery upon filing it with the com- petent court. This ensures a fair and efficient legal process for all parties involved. If service of the complaint cannot be made by the court officer (for example, if the adversary has changed addresses or the court officer cannot find anyone at the address specified in the complaint), the court may order any of the following other methods of service: • posting the complaint at a noticeable place at the domicile or operating office of the party or person to whom the pleading or document is directed; • depositing the complaint with a local administrative official or a police official and posting a notice of such deposit by the method stated above; • advertising it; or • any other means as the court sees fit. Assuming that the case meets the jurisdictional requirements of the Thai courts as outlined in 3.3 Jurisdictional Requirements for a Defendant , then a defendant residing outside of Thailand can be sued in a Thai proceeding. Unless the law of the jurisdiction in which the defendant resides provides for alternative means of service, the complaint would need to be served through diplomatic channels through the Thai In a typical case, when a writ of summons and com- plaint has been served on the defendant, the defend- ant shall prepare and file an answer in writing with the court within 15 days. A defendant may also file a petition to request an extension of time to file the answer. Typically, the court would allow two or three extensions of the deadline to file the answer. Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 3.6 Failure to Respond If the defendant does not file any answer to the court and does not otherwise become involved in the case by any means, the plaintiff shall file a request with the court within 15 days from the expiration of the period for the defendant to file an answer, for the court to render a judgment or order adjudicating in favour of the plaintiff by default.
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