Tag: Legal Execution

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Thai Cabinet Approves Draft Regulation Adding PAT to List of Government Agencies Eligible for Administrative Legal Execution

The Thai Cabinet has approved the draft Ministerial Regulation Prescribing Government Agencies Authorized to Request Administrative Enforcement B.E. .…, as proposed by the Ministry of Transport. A key amendment under this draft regulation is the inclusion of the Port Authority of Thailand (PAT) among the government agencies authorized to submit requests for administrative execution to legal execution officers.

This amendment is expected to strengthen PAT’s authority to enforce administrative fines and execute payment-related administrative orders in accordance with applicable laws. It is also anticipated to enhance regulatory efficiency at major ports nationwide, thereby supporting port operations and improving service standards.

Background

As PAT is established as a state enterprise, it does not fall within the scope of the Administrative Procedure Act B.E. 2539 (1996) and has therefore been unable to directly request administrative execution by legal execution officers.

Consequently, when individuals or companies fail to comply with payment obligations arising from PAT’s orders, PAT has had limited means to enforce compliance. This limitation has resulted in delays and inefficiencies in executing payment orders, with numerous cases remaining unresolved due to the lack of direct enforcement authority.

PAT’s New Administrative Execution Authority

Designating PAT as an eligible government agency under this draft regulation will enable it to apply standard administrative execution procedures and significantly improve its ability to collect outstanding debts and enforce payment-related administrative orders in a manner comparable to other government agencies.

Once the regulation enters into force, PAT will be entitled to directly request the court to appoint legal execution officers to seize or sell assets of individuals or businesses that fail to comply with administrative orders requiring payment, including through public auction procedures.

Key Impact on the Private Sector and Business Operators

  1. Stricter compliance with PAT orders: Businesses must promptly comply with PAT’s fees, fines, and administrative orders to avoid enforcement by court-appointed execution officers.
  2. Expedited dispute handling: Businesses and investors will need to respond more promptly to administrative notices, as delays may lead to administrative execution proceedings.
  3. Clearer enforcement procedures: Enforcement actions such as asset seizure and auction will follow uniform, transparent procedures, enabling businesses to better anticipate outcomes.
  4. Enhanced internal compliance requirements: Companies may need to strengthen internal controls to ensure timely payments and avoid additional costs or enforcement measures.
  5. Reduced reliance on civil litigation: Enforcement will primarily proceed through administrative execution rather than civil court proceedings, while the right to challenge orders before administrative courts remains preserved.

Conclusion

This draft regulation represents a significant development in empowering PAT to function more effectively as a regulatory authority. By enabling PAT to request legal execution of payment-related administrative orders, the government aims to enhance enforcement efficiency and ensure stronger compliance. This change is expected to materially affect how private businesses interact with PAT, making enforcement processes clearer, more expeditious, and more predictable.

Author: Panisa Suwanmatajarn, Managing Partner.

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Incompletion of Asset Seizures for Conducting Land Appropriations

When the judgement debtor fails to comply with the whole or part of the court judgment/order pronounced against them, the Civil Procedure Code allows the judgment creditor to apply for execution procedure by filing for a writ of execution with the court. This enables the creditor to get repayment. So, the Legal Execution Department plays a crucial role in dealing with the judgment debtor’s assets during this procedure. However, there are some issues in practice during the legal execution proceeding that we would like to address in this article as follows:

1.Is it necessary to seize any buildings or structures on the land if the land’s value alone covers the debt owed?

In general, when the execution officer operates with the execution proceeding, the execution officer will consider the seizure proceeding under the Civil Procedure Code. This section determines the principle that the property of the judgement debtor shall not be seized or attached in excess of what is sufficient to secure performance to the judgement creditor. In other words, the seizure of property shall not exceed the debt value. However, there is an exception that the seizing property exceeds the debt if the property cannot be separated according to the nature of such property and there is no other judgment debtor’s assets.

In practice, if legal execution involves with seizing land and the land’s value covers the repayment of the debt to the judgment creditor. The execution officer is required to seize the entire property including land, buildings, and all immobility assets attached to it. This is to prevent future disputes over the buildings’ ownership or demolition costs if only the land was initially seized. However, the above-mentioned proceeding is not specified in the law, but it is standard practice to avoid potential future issues that may be occurred during the public auction process.

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2. If the Land Seizure is incomplete what is the next step for the judgement creditor?

When the seizure of property is occurring due to the reasons that the judgement debtor fails to comply with the whole or part of the court judgment/order pronounced against them, or the initial seizure of property did not include all buildings or structures on the land, the judgement creditor obliges to take further action. In such cases, the judgement creditor needs to file an entirely new execution petition to seize the remaining assets attached to the land. This new petition will be combined with the original case file. After the new petition is added to the original case file, the relevant execution officer will conduct the full seizure process of assets, including all previously missed assets. When the execution process is completed, the relevant authority will then move forward to the property appraisal process.

Subsequently, the next step involves the property appraisal process, which is regulated by the Regulations of the Ministry of Justice regarding Property Appraisal, B.E. 2557 (2014). This section defines the authority and criteria for conducting the appraisal as follows:

  • If the total value of the seized property does not exceed 10 million baht, the official receiver or legal execution officer has the authority to conduct the appraisal of value of property themselves.
  • If the property value exceeds 10 million baht but does not exceed 50 million baht, the appraisal of value of property must be carried out by an appraisal officer appointed by the Director-General of the Legal Execution Department.
  • If the property value exceeds 50 million baht, the appraisal of value of property must be conducted by the appraisal committee appointed by the Director-General of the Legal Execution Department.

3. The next steps once the property is apprised?

Once the relevant authority has conducted the appraisal of value of all properties and determined the value, the seizure property will be entered into the public auction under the Civil Procedure Code.

Author: Panisa Suwanmatajarn, Managing Partner.

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