Section 217 — How arbitrators reach an award
Statutory text (Thai original)
ถ้าในข้อตกลงมิได้กำหนดไว้เป็นอย่างอื่น คำชี้ขาดของอนุญาโตตุลาการนั้นให้อยู่ภายในบังคับต่อไปนี้
(๑) ในกรณีที่มีอนุญาโตตุลาการหลายคน ให้ชี้ขาดตามคะแนนเสียงฝ่ายข้างมาก
(๒) ถ้าคะแนนเสียงเท่ากัน ให้อนุญาโตตุลาการตั้งบุคคลภายนอกเป็นประธานขึ้นคนหนึ่ง เพื่อออกคะแนนเสียงชี้ขาด ถ้าอนุญาโตตุลาการไม่ตกลงกันในการตั้งประธาน ให้ยื่นคำขอโดยทำเป็นคำร้องต่อศาลให้มีคำสั่งตั้งประธาน
English translation
If the agreement does not provide otherwise, the award of the arbitrators shall be subject to the following:
(1) Where there are several arbitrators, the decision shall be made according to the majority of votes.
(2) If the votes are equal, the arbitrators shall appoint an outside person as an umpire to cast the deciding vote. If the arbitrators cannot agree on the appointment of the umpire, an application shall be made by motion to the court for an order appointing the umpire.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified — always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
This section sits in the Arbitration chapter of the Civil Procedure Code, which governs court-connected arbitration. It supplies default voting rules that apply only where the parties' arbitration agreement is silent. A majority carries the award among several arbitrators, and a deadlock is resolved by an umpire (an outside person) whose vote breaks the tie. The court's role here is limited: it steps in solely to appoint the umpire when the arbitrators cannot agree, on a motion filed with the court.
Why this matters in practice
If you are drafting an arbitration clause for a court-connected arbitration, decide in advance how ties are broken and who appoints the umpire, otherwise these default rules apply and you may end up asking the court to choose the umpire, which adds time. For most private commercial disputes, parties instead choose out-of-court arbitration under the Arbitration Act. If you are weighing arbitration against litigation, our guide to mediation and arbitration in Thailand explains the trade-offs.
Frequently asked questions
How do arbitrators decide when there are several of them?
Under Section 217 they decide by a majority of votes, unless the arbitration agreement provides another method.
What happens if the arbitrators are tied?
They appoint an outside person as umpire to cast the deciding vote. If they cannot agree on the umpire, the court appoints one on a motion.