Article 48 — Court's duty to record hearings
Texte légal (original thaï)
ในคดีทุกเรื่อง ให้เป็นหน้าที่ของศาลต้องจดแจ้งรายงานการนั่งพิจารณาหรือกระบวนพิจารณาอื่น ๆ ของศาลไว้ทุกครั้งรายงานนั้นต้องมีรายการต่อไปนี้
(๑) เลขคดี
(๒) ชื่อคู่ความ
(๓) สถานที่ วัน และเวลาที่ศาลนั่งพิจารณาหรือดำเนินกระบวนพิจารณา
(๔) ข้อความโดยย่อเกี่ยวด้วยเรื่องที่กระทำและรายการข้อสำคัญอื่น ๆ
(๕) ลายมือชื่อผู้พิพากษาเมื่อมีกฎหมายบัญญัติไว้หรือเมื่อศาลเห็นเป็นการจำเป็นก็ให้ศาลจดบันทึก (โดยจดรวมไว้ในรายงานพิสดารหรืออีกส่วนหนึ่งต่างหาก) ซึ่งคำแถลงหรือคำคัดค้านในข้อสำคัญ ข้อตกลง คำชี้ขาด คำสั่ง หรือการอื่น ๆ หรือกระบวนพิจารณาที่ทำด้วยวาจาตามบทบัญญัติแห่งประมวลกฎหมายนี้
traduction anglaise
In every case, it shall be the duty of the court to record a report of each hearing or other proceeding of the court on every occasion. Such a report must contain the following particulars: (1) the case number; (2) the names of the parties; (3) the place, date, and time at which the court held the hearing or conducted the proceeding; (4) a brief statement of the matter done and other important particulars; (5) the signature of the judge. Where the law so provides or where the court considers it necessary, the court shall record, either by including it in the detailed report or in a separate part, any statement or objection on an important point, any agreement, decision, order, or other matter, or any proceeding conducted orally in accordance with the provisions of this Code.
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 48 imposes on the court the duty to keep a report of each hearing or proceeding, and it lists the mandatory particulars: case number, names of the parties, the place, date, and time, a brief statement of what was done, and the judge's signature. A second limb requires the court, where the law provides or it considers necessary, to record important statements, objections, agreements, decisions, orders, and oral proceedings, either in the detailed report or separately. These records are the official account of what happened in court and underpin section 49, which makes the report prima facie evidence once read and signed. The courts read the requirements purposively: a technical gap, such as omitting the time where the proceeding was not held before the parties, does not necessarily make the proceeding unlawful, but a report that fails to record who attended and what was done can be fatally deficient.
Pourquoi cela est important en pratique
The court record of each hearing is the official memory of your case, so read it before you sign and make sure it accurately captures what was said, agreed, or objected to, because that record can later be treated as evidence of what happened. If something important was said orally, ask the court to note it. If a record is materially incomplete, for instance it does not show who appeared or what was done, that can be a ground to challenge how the proceeding was conducted. A lawyer sitting in the hearing can catch and correct record errors on the spot, which is another reason to have representation at each appearance. See our overview of what to expect in a Thai court.
Décisions de la Cour suprême interprétant cette section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 4047/2551 (2008)
Although section 48(3) requires the court to record the place, date, and time of a proceeding, where an appellate court's proceeding is not conducted before the parties and its record must be read out by the trial court, the absence of a sitting time does not make the proceeding unlawful.
The defendants argued that an appellate court record dated 29 January 2007 was unlawful because it did not state the time in the box for when the judge sat. The Supreme Court held that although section 48(3), applied through section 15 of the Criminal Procedure Code, requires the place, date, and time to be recorded, the appellate court's proceeding was not conducted before the parties and had to be read out by the trial court, so the appellate court could not state a sitting time. The record was therefore not defective on that ground.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 8493/2551 (2008)
A hearing record that does not show who attended or record the necessary proceedings, as required by section 48, is deficient, and this matters because non-appearance can lead to default consequences that must be documented.
The trial court entered judgment for the plaintiff on the documents, but the record did not show, as required by section 48, what was done at the hearing, including which party attended and other necessary proceedings. The Supreme Court noted that it also did not appear whether the second defendant attended, which mattered because under section 193 bis paragraph two a defendant who fails to attend without seeking a postponement or explaining the obstacle is deemed in default, a consequence the record must reflect.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 15984/2553 (2010)
A lay judge who signs the court's hearing record made under section 48 can qualify as a witness to a document recorded in it, since no law prescribes a particular status for a witness to a document.
The issue was whether a divorce by mutual consent recorded in the court's hearing report satisfied the witness requirement of section 1514 paragraph two of the Civil and Commercial Code. The Supreme Court noted that under section 48 the court must record each hearing with a brief statement of what was done and the judge's signature. Since no law prescribes any particular status for a witness to a document, the lay judge who signed the hearing record was a witness to the consensual divorce recorded in it, so the first defendant could counterclaim to have the plaintiff register the divorce.
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 the court have to keep a written record of each hearing?
Yes. Under section 48, the court must record a report of every hearing or proceeding, containing the case number, the parties, the place, date, and time, a brief statement of what was done, and the judge's signature.
Is a hearing invalid if the record is missing a detail like the time?
Not always. Courts read section 48 purposively. A technical gap, such as omitting the time where the proceeding was not held before the parties, may not make it unlawful, but a record that fails to show who attended and what was done can be seriously deficient.