Section 1601
Statutory text (Thai original)
ทายาทไม่จำต้องรับผิดเกินกว่าทรัพย์มรดกที่ตกทอดได้แก่ตนมาตรา ๑๖๐๒[271] เมื่อบุคคลใดต้องถือว่าถึงแก่ความตายตามความใน
Verbatim from the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State
คำแปลภาษาอังกฤษ
An heir shall not be liable in excess of the property devolving on him.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified — always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
Section 1601 is part of Book 6 (Succession) of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code. This entry is awaiting firm-authored commentary; the statutory text above is verbatim from the Office of the Council of State (OCS Krisdika) Thai source, with the English translation from the FAO/UN FAOLEX repository. Always rely on the Thai original for legal proceedings.
Why this matters in practice
For lawyers: creditors of the estate sue the heirs in their capacity as heirs; they cannot pursue the heirs' personal assets. The cap applies per heir based on the share each receives. For clients: accepting an inheritance does not expose you to unlimited personal liability for the deceased's debts. However, if an heir commingles estate assets with personal assets or distributes assets before creditors are paid, complications may arise.
Legislative history
Part of the original Civil and Commercial Code codification; no major subsequent amendment. This provision introduces a key protective limitation on universal succession: while heirs receive the estate automatically, they are not personally exposed beyond the inherited assets.
Supreme Court decisions interpreting this section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 3047/2529 (1986) ★ Landmark
An heir is liable for estate debts only up to the value of the inherited property; estate creditors cannot apply to have the heir personally adjudicated bankrupt for estate debts.
The plaintiff sued the defendant (heir of the debtor) to recover a debt incurred by the defendant's father before death. The court held that the debt was a duty and liability of the deceased under §1600, not directly a debt of the heir personally; if the heir received the inheritance, the heir is liable to estate creditors only up to the value of the inherited assets under §1601 and the plaintiff could not petition for the heir's personal bankruptcy.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 3351/2531 (1988)
A defence that the heir received no inheritance does not defeat the creditor's claim at the pleadings stage; liability is assessed at enforcement and capped at the inherited property under §1601.
The defendants, sued as heirs of the deceased debtor, argued that they had not received the inheritance and thus had no liability. The court held this was not a basis for dismissing the claim at the pleadings stage; the question of what assets the heirs actually received is relevant only at the enforcement stage. The heirs cannot in any event be liable beyond the inherited property under §1601.
Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.