THAILAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Chusert Supasitthumrong, John Frangos, Alongkorn Tongmee and Eric Meyer, Tilleke & Gibbins
• In order to protect the public interest, the court at its discretion can order that trial be conducted confidentially (ie, not open to the public). Written records of hearings (in the form of summaries of witness testimony and memoranda of proceedings) are not available to the public. They are only available to the parties to the case. 7.7 Level of Intervention by a Judge During a witness hearing or trial, the judge has the power to control the witness presentation. This could include, among other things, ordering a lawyer ask- ing the witness to focus on the issues in dispute or rejecting testimony which is not related to the issues in dispute. When considering a petition or motion that is of a gen- eral or relatively straightforward nature, the court will typically issue its judgment or decision at the hearing. Examples of such petitions would include a petition to submit an additional evidence list or a petition to amend a pleading or witness statement. For petitions addressing more complex and/or poten- tially significant matters, the court may decide to issue its judgment at a later time. Examples of such peti- tions would include a petition to accept the late sub- mission of a defendant’s answer or a petition asking the court to dispose of a case due to the existence of an arbitration agreement between the parties. 7.8 General Timeframes for Proceedings The timeframe for proceedings depends on each case. Factors that may determine the case timeframe include complexity of the case and the backlog and caseload of the court in which the case is filed. For commercial disputes, a reasonable estimated timeframe for proceedings from commencement of a claim through to trial can be 12 to 18 months, plus another one to three months for obtaining a lower- court judgment. The length of the trial itself will depend on the number of witnesses that will testify at trial as well as the court’s schedule of available dates for the hearings. Thai courts will use the number of witnesses as the basis for scheduling the number of days for witness hearings. The court will attempt to schedule
these witness hearings on consecutive days, but this will depend on the court’s schedule.
8. Settlement 8.1 Court Approval
In Thailand, court approval for settling a lawsuit is generally not required for most civil cases. The par- ties can negotiate and enter into either an in-court or an out-of-court settlement agreement. If the parties choose an in-court settlement agreement, the agree- ment must be approved by the court. However, there are other specific circumstances where court approval is necessary, as listed below. Family Law Cases In divorce proceedings or child custody cases, any settlement agreement regarding the division of prop- erty or child support must be approved by the court to ensure that it is fair and in the best interest of the In bankruptcy proceedings, settlements or compro- mises involving the distribution of assets or liabilities typically require court approval. Class-Action Lawsuits If a settlement is reached in a class-action lawsuit, it usually needs court approval to ensure that the inter- ests of all class members are adequately represented and protected. Certain Types of Claims In some specific situations, such as when a minor is involved or in cases where a party is deemed to lack the legal capacity to settle (ie, someone under guardi- anship), court approval may be required to protect the interests of those parties. children involved. Bankruptcy Cases When court approval is necessary, the parties typically submit their settlement agreement to the court, which then reviews it to ensure it complies with legal stand- ards and protects the rights of all parties involved.
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