Section 1601

Supreme Court decisions interpreting this section

1. 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.

   Read the full decision (deka.in.th)

2. 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.

   Read the full decision (deka.in.th)

Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.