Article 47 — Proving a power of attorney
Texte légal (original thaï)
ถ้าคู่ความหรือบุคคลใดยื่นใบมอบอำนาจต่อศาล ให้ศาลมีอำนาจที่จะสั่งให้คู่ความหรือบุคคลนั้นให้ถ้อยคำสาบานตัวว่าเป็นใบมอบอำนาจอันแท้จริงถ้าศาลมีเหตุอันควรสงสัยว่า ใบมอบอำนาจที่ยื่นนั้นจะไม่ใช่ใบมอบอำนาจอันแท้จริงก็ดี หรือเมื่อคู่ความอีกฝ่ายหนึ่งยื่นคำร้องแสดงเหตุอันควรสงสัยว่าใบมอบอำนาจนั้นจะมิใช่ใบมอบอำนาจอันแท้จริงก็ดี ให้ศาลมีอำนาจที่จะสั่งให้คู่ความหรือบุคคลที่เกี่ยวข้องนั้นยื่นใบมอบอำนาจตามที่บัญญัติไว้ต่อไปนี้ถ้าใบมอบอำนาจนั้นได้ทำในราชอาณาจักรไทยต้องให้นายอำเภอเป็นพยาน ถ้าได้ทำในเมืองต่างประเทศที่มีกงสุลไทย ต้องให้กงสุลนั้นเป็นพยาน ถ้าได้ทำในเมืองต่างประเทศที่ไม่มีกงสุลไทย ต้องให้บุคคลเหล่านี้เป็นพยานคือเจ้าพนักงานโนตารีปับลิกหรือแมยิสเตร็ด หรือบุคคลอื่นซึ่งกฎหมายแห่งท้องถิ่นตั้งให้เป็นผู้มีอำนาจเป็นพยานในเอกสารเช่นว่านี้ และต้องมีใบสำคัญของรัฐบาลต่างประเทศที่เกี่ยวข้องแสดงว่าบุคคลที่เป็นพยานนั้นเป็นผู้มีอำนาจกระทำการได้บทบัญญัติแห่งมาตรานี้ให้ใช้บังคับแก่ใบสำคัญและเอกสารอื่น ๆ ทำนองเช่นว่ามานี้ ซึ่งคู่ความจะต้องยื่นต่อศาล
traduction anglaise
If a party or any person submits a power of attorney to the court, the court shall have the power to order that party or person to make a statement on oath that it is a genuine power of attorney. If the court has reasonable cause to suspect that the power of attorney submitted is not genuine, or where the other party files a motion showing reasonable cause to suspect that the power of attorney is not genuine, the court shall have the power to order the party or person concerned to submit the power of attorney in accordance with the following provisions. If the power of attorney was made within the Kingdom of Thailand, the District Officer must be a witness; if it was made in a foreign city where there is a Thai consul, that consul must be a witness; if it was made in a foreign city where there is no Thai consul, the following persons must be witnesses, namely a notary public or magistrate, or any other person whom the law of the locality appoints as having authority to witness such a document, and there must be a certificate of the relevant foreign government showing that the person acting as witness has the authority to do so. The provisions of this section shall apply to certificates and other documents of a like nature which a party is required to submit to the court.
Cette traduction anglaise est fournie à titre indicatif uniquement et n'a pas encore été vérifiée de manière définitive ; référez-vous toujours à l'original thaï.
Annotation de l'entreprise
Section 47 lets the court test the authenticity of a power of attorney or similar document filed in proceedings. As a first step, the court may simply require the person to swear the document is genuine. The formal certification requirements in paragraph three, District Officer in Thailand, Thai consul abroad, or notary or magistrate plus a foreign government certificate where no Thai consul exists, are triggered only where there is reasonable cause to suspect the document is not genuine, whether raised by the court or by the other party's motion. The courts have made clear that this is a mechanism the court invokes on genuine doubt: an unnotarised or uncertified power of attorney is not automatically invalid, and a party challenging one must show reasonable cause for suspicion. The final paragraph extends the section to certificates and other like documents a party must submit.
Pourquoi cela est important en pratique
This matters most for foreigners and companies who litigate through an attorney: a power of attorney signed abroad is usually acceptable as filed, and it does not have to be consularised or notarised just because it came from overseas. The extra certification steps kick in only if the court or the other side raises a genuine, reasoned doubt about authenticity, so a bare objection that a document was not notarised will not defeat it. To avoid disputes, have overseas powers of attorney properly witnessed at a Thai embassy or before a notary where practical. See our glossary entry on procuration for the basics.
Décisions de la Cour suprême interprétant cette section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 4502/2565 (2022)
Where there is no reasonable cause to suspect that a power of attorney is not genuine, it need not comply with the certification requirements of section 47 paragraph three, and no consular or embassy certification is required.
The defendant produced no evidence to show that the plaintiff's power of attorney was not genuine, so there was no reasonable cause to suspect it. The Supreme Court held that the power of attorney therefore did not have to be made in accordance with section 47 paragraph three, and no Thai consul or embassy certification was needed. A separate argument that the attorney's authority was limited to cases below a stated value was addressed on its own facts.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 6616/2560 (2017)
Section 47 is about the court's power over a power of attorney or similar document where there is doubt or a party's motion showing reasonable cause; it does not mean that a document lacking notarisation is invalid.
The Supreme Court explained that section 47, applied through the intellectual property and international trade court statute, concerns the court's power over a power of attorney or similar document where the court has doubt, or the other party files a motion showing reasonable cause to suspect authenticity. In those cases the court may order the party to submit the document by the method in paragraph three. It does not follow that a document without notarisation, or without compliance with paragraph three, is thereby not genuine.
Décisions sélectionnées avec numéros de dossier vérifiés dans la base de données de la Cour suprême. Les versions anglaises sont des traductions éditoriales réalisées par le cabinet à des fins d'étude.
Foire aux questions
Does a power of attorney signed abroad have to be notarised for a Thai court?
Not automatically. Under section 47, the formal witnessing requirements, such as a Thai consul or a notary with a foreign government certificate, apply only where the court or the other party shows reasonable cause to suspect the document is not genuine.
Can the other side challenge my power of attorney just because it is not notarised?
A bare objection is not enough. Under section 47, the certification requirements are triggered by reasonable cause to suspect the document is not genuine. An unnotarised power of attorney is not automatically invalid.