Page 13 - ดุลพาห เล่ม3.indd

ดุลพาห

I. Introduction

Nowadays, Thailand is an international trade-oriented nation with the sum
of exports and imports accounting for 120 percent of its GDP . The establishment of
1
the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), which aims to create a single market and
production base within ASEAN, has greatly accelerated the internationalization of the

Thai economy. Furthermore, rapid technological innovation and the improvement of
transportation have dramatically increased people’s ability to engage in cross-border

activities. However, the globalization of social and economic activities also exposes
every individual and business in Thailand to the risk of international litigation.

A number of problems related to international litigation arise before the courts,
such as which court should have competence to hear a transnational dispute and

which law should be applied to the case if a court’s jurisdiction can be established.
2
However, the principles of adjudicatory jurisdiction in Thailand have not changed

substantially since the Civil Procedure Code (“CPC”) was first promulgated in 1934 .
3
At the same time, Thai society became increasingly exposed to international contacts

to a degree which could not have been anticipated in the early 1900s. Moreover, the
Act on Conflict of Laws has remained unchanged for more than 80 years since its

promulgation in 1938 . Although the CPC was amended in 1991 to extend the concept
4

1. See “General Profile: Thailand (2017),” UNCTADstat, accessed January 31, 2018, https://unctadstat.

unctad.org/CountryProfile/GeneralProfile/en-GB/764/index.html.
2. Paulius Jurcys, “International Jurisdiction in Intellectual Property Disputes: CLIP, ALI Principles and
ê
other Legislative Proposals in a Comparative Perspective,” Journal of Intellectual Property, Information
Technology and E-Commerce Law 3, no. 3 (2012): 175.
3. The CPC was first promulgated in 1934 and entered into force in June 20, 1935. There were revisions
on jurisdictional rules in 1991 and the modified provisions have remained in force until today. See
Vichai Ariyanuntaka, “Problems Respecting Jurisdiction and Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign
Judgments and Arbitral Awards: A Thai Perspective,” Law Journal of the Thai Bar 52, no. 3 (1996): 42-44.

4. The English translation of the Act on Conflict of Laws B.E. 2481 (1938) is available at http://web.
krisdika.go.th/data/outsitedata/outsite21/file/Act_on_Conflict_of_Law,_B.E._2481.pdf (last visited on
January 31, 2018).

2 เล่มที่ ๓ ปีที่ ๖๕