Section 182: Reading Judgment and Absence of Parties
Statutory text (Thai original)
คดีที่อยู่ในระหว่างไต่สวนมูลฟ้องหรือพิจารณา ถ้ามีคำร้องระหว่างพิจารณาขึ้นมา ให้ศาลสั่งตามที่เห็นควร เมื่อการพิจารณาเสร็จแล้ว ให้พิพากษาหรือสั่งตามรูปความให้อ่านคำพิพากษาหรือคำสั่งในศาลโดยเปิดเผยในวันเสร็จการพิจารณาหรือภายในเวลาสามวันนับแต่เสร็จคดี ถ้ามีเหตุอันสมควร จะเลื่อนไปอ่านวันอื่นก็ได้ แต่ต้องจดรายงานเหตุนั้นไว้เมื่อศาลอ่านให้คู่ความฟังแล้ว ให้คู่ความลงลายมือชื่อไว้ ถ้าเป็นความผิดของโจทก์ที่ไม่มา จะอ่านโดยโจทก์ไม่อยู่ก็ได้ ในกรณีที่จำเลยไม่อยู่ โดยไม่มีเหตุสงสัยว่าจำเลยหลบหนีหรือจงใจไม่มาฟัง ก็ให้ศาลรอการอ่านไว้จนกว่าจำเลยจะมาศาล แต่ถ้ามีเหตุสงสัยว่าจำเลยหลบหนีหรือจงใจไม่มาฟัง ให้ศาลออกหมายจับจำเลย เมื่อได้ออกหมายจับแล้วไม่ได้ตัวจำเลยมาภายในหนึ่งเดือน นับแต่วันออกหมายจับ ก็ให้ศาลอ่านคำพิพากษาหรือคำสั่งลับหลังจำเลยได้ และให้ถือว่าโจทก์หรือจำเลยแล้วแต่กรณีได้ฟังคำพิพากษาหรือคำสั่งนั้นแล้ว
ในกรณีที่คำพิพากษาหรือคำสั่งต้องเลื่อนอ่านไปโดยขาดจำเลยบางคนถ้าจำเลยที่อยู่จะถูกปล่อย ให้ศาลมีอำนาจปล่อยชั่วคราวระหว่างรออ่านคำพิพากษาหรือคำสั่งนั้น
English translation
In a case that is in the course of a preliminary examination of the merits or of trial, if an application is made during the proceedings, the court shall order thereon as it thinks fit. When the proceedings are completed, judgment or an order shall be given according to the merits of the case. The judgment or order shall be read in open court on the day the proceedings are completed or within three days from the completion of the case; if there is proper cause, the reading may be postponed to another day, but a record of that cause must be made. When the court has read it to the parties, the parties shall sign their names. If it is the fault of the prosecutor who fails to appear, it may be read in the prosecutor's absence. Where the defendant is absent without any suspicion that the defendant has fled or intentionally failed to attend, the court shall postpone the reading until the defendant appears in court; but if there is suspicion that the defendant has fled or intentionally failed to attend, the court shall issue a warrant of arrest for the defendant. When a warrant of arrest has been issued and the defendant is not brought before the court within one month from the date of the warrant, the court may read the judgment or order in the defendant's absence, and the prosecutor or the defendant, as the case may be, shall be deemed to have heard that judgment or order.
Where the reading of the judgment or order must be postponed because some defendants are absent, if the defendants who are present are to be released, the court has the power to grant provisional release pending the reading of that judgment or order.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified. Always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
Section 182 opens Title 3 (Judgments and Orders) and governs how a decision is rendered and delivered. It requires judgment to be read publicly within three days of the close of proceedings, permits postponement for recorded cause, and carefully regulates the parties' absence. A defendant who is merely absent without suspicion of flight must have the reading postponed, but where flight or intentional non-attendance is suspected, the court issues an arrest warrant and, if the defendant is not produced within one month, may read judgment in absence. Paragraph three, on reading behind an absent defendant's back, has been read together with Section 215 on appellate procedure, and defects in the reading are procedural irregularities that an affected party may move to set aside.
Why this matters in practice
This section directly affects your appeal rights, because time to appeal generally runs from when the judgment is read to you. If you are a defendant and cannot attend a reading, make sure the court knows you have not fled, since an unjustified suspicion can trigger an arrest warrant and a reading in your absence after one month. Equally, a civil claimant in the criminal case must be notified and have the judgment read to them, or their right to appeal the civil part can be prejudiced. If you have missed a reading or fear an irregular one, act quickly; consider an online consultation with a Thai lawyer to protect your deadlines.
Supreme Court decisions interpreting this section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 122/2567 (2024)
Reading an appellate judgment behind the defendant's back before the notice of the reading date has been lawfully served on the defendant is an irregular proceeding contrary to Section 182 paragraph three together with Section 215.
The trial court issued an arrest warrant and then read the appellate judgment in the defendant's absence, although the notice of the reading date had not been lawfully served. The Supreme Court held this was an irregular proceeding under Section 182 paragraph three with Section 215, which the affected party could move to set aside within eight days.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 4136/2567 (2024)
Failing to notify civil claimants of the reading date and to read the judgment to them breaches Section 182 and prejudices their right to appeal the civil part of the case.
The trial court dismissed the claimants' request for compensation but neither notified them of the reading date nor read the judgment to them. The Supreme Court held this failure to comply with Section 182 prejudiced their right to appeal the civil part, and it was a legal issue concerning non-compliance the court could address.
Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.
Cited in 45 Supreme Court decisions (1949 to 2024)
Selected citing decisions
- Decision 122/2567 (2024)
- Decision 425/2559 (2016)
- Decision 10173/2558 (2015)
- Decision 1831/2557 (2014)
- Decision 9181/2555 (2012)
- Decision 6403/2555 (2012)
- Decision 1672/2555 (2012)
- Decision 4444/2554 (2011)
This list is selected automatically, weighted towards judgments that turn on this section rather than ones that merely recite it when passing sentence. It has not yet been reviewed by the firm.
Most often cited alongside
Sections that appear in the same judgments as this one most often. The figure is the number of decisions.
Counted across the firm's corpus of 83,652 Supreme Court decisions, 1921 to 2026. The count is complete; the stated year range trims rare outliers so it describes where the citations actually sit. These figures are computed by us and are not official court statistics. How we count these, and what we measured
Frequently asked questions
When must a criminal judgment be read in Thailand?
Under Section 182, in open court on the day proceedings finish or within three days, though the reading may be postponed for a recorded proper cause.
Can a judgment be read if the defendant does not show up?
It depends. If there is no suspicion of flight, the court postpones the reading. If flight or intentional non-attendance is suspected, it issues an arrest warrant and may read judgment in absence after one month.
Why does the reading of judgment matter for appeals?
Because the time to appeal generally runs from when judgment is read to a party. An improper or unnotified reading, as under Section 182, can prejudice the right to appeal.
Related guides on ThaiLawOnline
Cite this section
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Plain citation
Criminal Procedure Code, s. 182 (Thailand) -
Academic citation
Criminal Procedure Code (Thailand), s. 182. ThaiLawOnline, https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-criminal-procedure-code/section-182/ (accessed 11 August 2026). -
Thai citation
ป.วิ.อ. มาตรา 182 -
Permalink
https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-criminal-procedure-code/section-182/ -
Embed on your site
<blockquote cite="https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-criminal-procedure-code/section-182/"><p>In a case that is in the course of a preliminary examination of the merits or of trial, if an application is made during the proceedings, the court shall order thereon as it thinks fit. When the proceedings are completed, judgment or an order shall…</p><footer>Criminal Procedure Code, s. 182 (Thailand) — <a href="https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-criminal-procedure-code/section-182/">ThaiLawOnline</a></footer></blockquote>
The Thai text is authoritative. The English is an unofficial translation by ThaiLawOnline, free to reuse with attribution.