Civil Case Filing

Jurisdiction

Jurisdiction is the power, right or authority to hear and decide cases. This is mandated by law and cannot be waived by the parties.

There are six courts in Bangkok that are competent to try and adjudicate civil cases. There are also several special court which are mandated to hear cases of special concern. Outside Bangkok, there are Provincial Courts which exercise jurisdiction over civil and criminal cases.

Under Thai law, Civil Courts are competent to try all kinds of civil cases of the following issue:

1. Cases with the amount of money or value of property in dispute exceeding 300,000 Thai baht;
2. Non-monetary cases where a plaintiff requests for a cessation of disturbance, annoyance or damages, or where the claims are incapable of pecuniary estimation;
3. Non-contentious cases like appointment of administrator of an estate, acknowledgment of a person's incapacity, appointment of a guardian, etc.

Venue

Venue should not be confused with jurisdiction. Venue is the place within the court's jurisdiction where a case shall be heard and decided. Unlike jurisdiction, venue may be waived by the parties.

The general rules on determining proper venue are:

1. To the court having the territorial jurisdiction in which the defendant is domiciled; or
2. To the court having the territorial jurisdiction in which the cause of action arose.

Prescription

In layman's terms, prescription is the deadline within which a legal action may be taken. This is also known as the Statute of Limitations. A case filed beyond the prescriptive period is sure to be dismissed for being filed out of time.