Article 240: How the appellate court decides
Statutory text (Thai original)
ศาลอุทธรณ์มีอำนาจที่จะวินิจฉัยคดีโดยเพียงแต่พิจารณาฟ้องอุทธรณ์ คำแก้อุทธรณ์ เอกสาร และหลักฐานทั้งปวง ในสำนวนความซึ่งศาลชั้นต้นส่งขึ้นมา เว้นแต่
(๑) ศาลอุทธรณ์ได้นัดฟังคำแถลงการณ์ด้วยวาจาตามที่บัญญัติไว้ในมาตรา ๒๔๑ แต่ถ้าคู่ความฝ่ายใดหรือทั้งสองฝ่ายไม่มาศาลในวันกำหนดนัด ศาลอุทธรณ์อาจดำเนินคดีไปได้ และคำพิพากษาหรือคำสั่งของศาลอุทธรณ์นั้น ไม่ให้ถือเป็นคำพิพากษาโดยขาดนัด
(๒) ถ้าศาลอุทธรณ์ยังไม่เป็นที่พอใจในการพิจารณาฟ้องอุทธรณ์ คำแก้อุทธรณ์ และพยานหลักฐาน ที่ปรากฏในสำนวน ภายใต้บังคับแห่งมาตรา ๒๓๘ และเฉพาะในปัญหาที่อุทธรณ์ให้ศาลมีอำนาจที่จะกำหนดประเด็นทำการสืบพยานที่สืบมาแล้ว หรือพยานที่เห็นควรสืบต่อไป และพิจารณาคดีโดยทั่ว ๆ ไป ดังที่บัญญัติไว้ในประมวลกฎหมายนี้สำหรับการพิจารณาในศาลชั้นต้น และให้นำบทบัญญัติแห่งประมวลกฎหมายนี้ว่าด้วยการพิจารณาในศาลชั้นต้น มาใช้บังคับด้วยโดยอนุโลม
(๓) ในคดีที่คู่ความอุทธรณ์ในปัญหาข้อกฎหมาย ถ้าศาลอุทธรณ์เห็นว่าศาลชั้นต้นยังมิได้พิจารณาหรือวินิจฉัยปัญหาข้อเท็จจริงอันเป็นสาระสำคัญในประเด็นให้ศาลอุทธรณ์มีอำนาจทำคำสั่งให้ศาลชั้นต้นพิจารณาปัญหาข้อเท็จจริงเช่นว่านั้น แล้วพิพากษาไปตามรูปความ
English translation
The appellate court has power to decide the case merely by considering the appeal, the answer to the appeal, and all the documents and evidence in the case file forwarded by the court of first instance, except:
(1) where the appellate court has set a date to hear oral submissions as provided in Section 241; but if either party or both parties fail to appear at the appointed time, the appellate court may proceed with the case, and its judgment or order shall not be regarded as a judgment by default;
(2) where the appellate court is not yet satisfied by its consideration of the appeal, the answer to the appeal, and the evidence appearing in the case file, then, subject to Section 238 and only on the issues under appeal, the court shall have power to frame the issues, take evidence already taken or evidence it thinks fit to take further, and conduct the proceedings generally as provided in this Code for proceedings in the court of first instance; and the provisions of this Code concerning proceedings in the court of first instance shall apply mutatis mutandis;
(3) in a case in which the parties appeal on a question of law, if the appellate court is of the opinion that the court of first instance has not yet considered or decided a question of fact that is material to the issues, the appellate court shall have power to order the court of first instance to consider such a question of fact, and then to give judgment according to the case.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified. Always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
Section 240 defines the appellate court's decision-making method. The default is decision on the file, without a fresh trial. Three exceptions follow. Subsection (1) covers oral-submission hearings under Section 241 and provides that non-appearance does not create a default judgment. Subsection (2) lets the court, when unsatisfied and subject to Section 238, frame issues and take evidence on the appealed points, applying first-instance procedure by analogy. Subsection (3) allows the court, in a law-question appeal, to remit a material fact the trial court never decided. A key limit runs through the Section: these powers presuppose a lawful appeal, so subsection (2) does not apply to an appeal that is itself defective, for example one that fails to state clear grounds under Section 225.
Why this matters in practice
Expect your appeal to be decided on the papers, so your written appeal and answer must carry the case; do not rely on getting an oral hearing. If you want the appellate court to take further evidence, it can do so under subsection (2), but only if your appeal is itself lawful and clearly states its grounds, so a vague or copy-paste appeal may be rejected before this power is ever reached. If a law-question appeal exposes a material fact the trial court never decided, the appellate court can send it back under subsection (3) rather than deciding it blind. Draft the appeal to stand entirely on its written record.
Décisions de la Cour suprême interprétant cette section
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Arrêt de la Cour suprême n° 5222/2567 (2024)
Section 240 (2) allows the appellate court to frame issues and take further evidence only where the appeal is on a question of fact that was properly raised in the court of first instance and decided there. A defendant in default of answer may appeal only to say that the plaintiff's evidence should not be believed or cannot be admitted, and may not rely on facts that were never in the case file, so allowing that defendant to adduce further evidence on appeal is contrary to Section 199 paragraph two and Section 240 (2).
The defendant was in default of answer and the trial court decided the case on the plaintiff's evidence taken ex parte. On appeal the defendant produced further documents and the Court of Appeal Region 5 allowed them, sending the case back for a witness to be examined in support. The Supreme Court held that unlawful: the defendant was relying on facts never put before the trial court rather than attacking the plaintiff's evidence, so Section 240 (2) had no application and the defendant had no right to call evidence at all.
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Arrêt de la Cour suprême n° 5668/2567 (2024)
The appellate court's power to take further steps under Section 240(2) presupposes a lawful appeal; an appeal that merely copies the defence and does not clearly dispute the trial court's reasoning is unlawful under Section 225 paragraph one and is not entertained.
The first defendant's appeal largely copied the defence and did not clearly dispute the trial court's reasoning. The Supreme Court held it unlawful under Section 225 paragraph one, and that the Section 240(2) power presupposes a lawful appeal, so the Court of Appeal was right not to entertain it.
Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.
Cited in 59 Supreme Court decisions (1946 to 2024)
Décisions de citation sélectionnées
- Decision 5668/2567 (2024)
- Décision 5222/2567 (2024)
- Decision 3332/2564 (2021)
- Decision 8614/2558 (2015)
- Decision 9136/2557 (2014)
- Decision 5089/2554 (2011)
- Decision 5679/2553 (2010)
- Decision 907/2551 (2008)
Cette liste est sélectionnée automatiquement, en privilégiant les jugements qui reposent sur cet article plutôt que sur ceux qui se contentent de le citer lors du prononcé de la peine. Elle n'a pas encore été examinée par le cabinet.
Le plus souvent cité aux côtés de
- Article 247 23
- Article 142 7
- Article 243 6
- Art. 15 du Code de procédure pénale thaïlandais 6
- Article 225 5
- Article 88 5
Sections qui apparaissent le plus souvent dans les mêmes jugements que celui-ci. Le chiffre correspond au nombre de décisions.
Calculé sur l'ensemble du corpus de 83 652 décisions de la Cour suprême du cabinet, de 1921 à 2026. Le décompte est exhaustif ; la plage d'années indiquée élimine les valeurs aberrantes rares afin de refléter la répartition réelle des citations. Ces chiffres sont calculés par nos soins et ne constituent pas des statistiques officielles de la Cour. Comment nous les comptons et ce que nous avons mesuré
Foire aux questions
La cour d'appel organise-t-elle un nouveau procès ?
En règle générale, non. Aux termes de l'article 240, la cour d'appel statue normalement sur la base de l'appel, de la réponse et du dossier. Elle ne recueille des éléments de preuve supplémentaires que dans les circonstances limitées prévues au paragraphe (2).
Si je manque l'audience de plaidoirie orale, est-ce que je perds par défaut ?
Non. En vertu de l'article 240(1), si une partie ne comparaît pas à la date fixée, la cour d'appel peut procéder et sa décision n'est pas considérée comme un jugement par défaut.
La cour d'appel peut-elle accepter des preuves supplémentaires ?
Oui, en vertu de l'article 240(2), si le dossier ne la satisfait pas. Cependant, ce pouvoir ne s'applique qu'à un appel recevable ; un appel irrégulier qui n'expose pas clairement ses motifs peut donc être rejeté d'emblée.
Guides connexes sur ThaiLawOnline
Citer cette section
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Citation simple
Civil Procedure Code, s. 240 (Thailand) -
Citation académique
Civil Procedure Code (Thailand), s. 240. ThaiLawOnline, https://www.thailawonline.com/fr/thai-civil-procedure-code/section-240/ (accessed 1 septembre 2026). -
Citation thaïlandaise
ป.วิ.พ. มาตรา 240 -
Lien permanent
https://www.thailawonline.com/fr/thai-civil-procedure-code/section-240/ -
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<blockquote cite="https://www.thailawonline.com/fr/thai-civil-procedure-code/section-240/"><p>The appellate court has power to decide the case merely by considering the appeal, the answer to the appeal, and all the documents and evidence in the case file forwarded by the court of first instance, except: (1) where the appellate court has set a…</p><footer>Civil Procedure Code, s. 240 (Thailand): <a href="https://www.thailawonline.com/fr/thai-civil-procedure-code/section-240/">ThaiLawOnline</a></footer></blockquote>
The Thai text is authoritative. The English is an unofficial translation by ThaiLawOnline, free to reuse with attribution.