Most laws in Thailand has been codified however until in the west where you would have decisions from higher courts that would bind the lower courts it does not work like that in Thailand. The concept of ‘stare decisis’ does not exist in Thailand.

There is no jury system in Thailand and unlike the West there is also no ‘discovery process’ before trial which would be available in the West. In Thailand however they try to settle the matter before trail by means of mediation and settling the matter without taking any of the courts time.

Once litigation is started and you have deciding to sue another party in Thailand you need to approach the court to issue summons on the respondent. Another petition needs to be done to petition the courts to also issue the complaint and summons the defendant. There is no ‘Sheriff of the Court’ in Thailand as the police do this. It normally take 2-3 weeks for this process to be completed. If the defendant is not in Thailand the summons needs to go via diplomatic channels.

Note that you cannot enforce foreign judgments in Thailand. You need to start the process from scratch and provide the foreign judgment as part of your evidence. It is then up to the Thai courts to decide what to do with the judgement once they have heard any new evidence and viewed the foreign judgment and reasoning.

Some of the most common litigation in Thailand is as follows:

• Criminal Law
• Civil Law – Breach of Contract
• Family Law – Divorce
• Personal Injury – Medical Malpractice
• Labor Disputes
• Extradition
• Intellectual Property Disputes
• Trade Disputes

If you are a foreigner and are looking at litigation in Thailand then obtain the services of a lawyer in Thailand to ensure that you understand the Thai legal system and that your legal issues can be settled speedily and in a cost effective manner.