Section 904 — Holder of a negotiable instrument — definition
Statutory text (Thai original)
อันผู้ทรงนั้น หมายความว่า บุคคลผู้มีตั๋วเงินไว้ในครอบครอง โดยฐานเป็นผู้รับเงิน หรือเป็นผู้รับสลักหลัง ถ้าและเป็นตั๋วเงินสั่งจ่ายให้แก่ผู้ถือ ๆ ก็นับว่าเป็นผู้ทรงเหมือนกัน
Verbatim from the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State
Firm annotation
Section 904 is part of Book 3 (Specific Contracts) 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: a person who receives a cheque with knowledge of an existing defence (e.g., no underlying debt) is not a good-faith holder and cannot overcome that defence. For laypersons: if you receive a cheque as payment, you are the 'holder' and can present it for payment — but if you took it knowing there was no valid debt behind it, you may not be able to enforce it.
Legislative history
Part of the original Civil and Commercial Code codification; no major subsequent amendment.
Supreme Court decisions interpreting this section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 1385/2554 (2011)
A holder of a cheque is constituted by taking possession as payee, endorsee, or bearer; the mode of transfer differs between order and bearer cheques.
A cheque is a negotiable instrument transferable by endorsement and delivery (for order cheques) or by mere delivery (for bearer cheques); the person who receives it by either method becomes the holder under Section 904.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 141/2560 (2017)
A holder who takes a cheque with knowledge that there is no underlying debt is not a good-faith holder and cannot defeat the drawer's defence.
A person who knew the cheque had no underlying debt but took it from the original payee's spouse and then sued on it was not a good-faith holder under Section 904; the drawer's defence of no underlying debt was available against such a holder.
Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.