Section 213: Extending Favorable Judgment to Co-Defendants
Statutory text (Thai original)
ในคดีซึ่งจำเลยผู้หนึ่งอุทธรณ์คัดค้านคำพิพากษา ซึ่งให้ลงโทษจำเลยหลายคนในความผิดฐานเดียวกันหรือต่อเนื่องกัน ถ้าศาลอุทธรณ์กลับหรือแก้คำพิพากษาศาลชั้นต้น ไม่ลงโทษหรือลดโทษให้จำเลย แม้เป็นเหตุอยู่ในส่วนลักษณะคดี ศาลอุทธรณ์มีอำนาจพิพากษาตลอดไปถึงจำเลยอื่นที่มิได้อุทธรณ์ ให้มิต้องถูกรับโทษ หรือได้ลดโทษดุจจำเลยผู้อุทธรณ์
English translation
In a case where one defendant appeals against a judgment imposing punishment on several defendants for the same offense or connected offenses, if the Court of Appeal reverses or amends the judgment of the court of first instance so as not to punish or to reduce the punishment of the appealing defendant, even where the ground lies in the nature of the case, the Court of Appeal has the power to extend its judgment to the other defendants who did not appeal, so that they shall not undergo the punishment or shall have their punishment reduced in the same manner as the appealing defendant.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified. Always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
Section 213 addresses fairness among co-defendants convicted of the same or connected offenses. Where only one appeals and the Court of Appeal reverses or reduces on a ground that lies in the nature of the case (เหตุในลักษณะคดี), rather than a ground personal to the appellant, the benefit is extended to the non-appealing co-defendants so they are treated the same. Grounds in the nature of the case include, for example, that the offense was not made out or that the claim was time-barred, matters that logically apply to all who share the same legal position. By Section 225 the Supreme Court has the same power, and it may extend relief to co-defendants who did not file a dika. The section prevents the anomaly of identically situated defendants receiving different outcomes merely because some did not appeal.
Why this matters in practice
If you are one of several co-defendants and cannot or did not appeal, you may still benefit when a co-defendant's appeal succeeds on a ground in the nature of the case, such as the offense not being proven or prescription: the court can extend the reversal or reduction to you. This matters where cost or circumstances keep some defendants from appealing. It does not apply to grounds personal to the appellant, so the benefit only follows when the winning point is one that logically covers everyone in the same position. If you share a conviction with others and are deciding who should appeal, an online consultation with a Thai lawyer can help you plan.
Supreme Court decisions interpreting this section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 45/2567 (2024)
Prescription of the prosecution is a ground in the nature of the case, so where it succeeds for an appealing defendant the higher court may extend the judgment to co-defendants who did not appeal, under Section 213 read with Section 225.
The Supreme Court found the prosecution time-barred for the appealing defendants. Holding that prescription is a ground in the nature of the case, it extended the dismissal to co-defendants who had not filed a dika, under Section 213 with Section 225, and dismissed the charge against them as well.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 1327/2568 (2025)
Where a matter of public order in the nature of the case leads the higher court to dismiss for the appealing defendants, it may extend the judgment to co-defendants whose case had already concluded without appeal, under Section 213 read with Section 225.
The Supreme Court raised a public-order point on its own and, treating it as a ground in the nature of the case, extended the dismissal to defendants 3 and 4 whose cases had ended without appeal, under Section 213 with Section 225, amending the judgment to dismiss the charge against them too.
Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.
Cited in 240 Supreme Court decisions (1946 to 2025)
Selected citing decisions
- Decision 1327/2568 (2025)
- Decision 2159/2566 (2023)
- Decision 463/2566 (2023)
- Decision 4533/2565 (2022)
- Decision 4396/2565 (2022)
- Decision 1732/2565 (2022)
- Decision 1730/2565 (2022)
- Decision 4041/2563 (2020)
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
- Section 225 203
- Thai Penal Code s. 83 202
- Thai Penal Code s. 78 146
- Thai Penal Code s. 91 131
- Thai Penal Code s. 90 84
- Thai Penal Code s. 29 69
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
Can a co-defendant who did not appeal still benefit from another's appeal?
Yes. Under Section 213, if the appeal succeeds on a ground in the nature of the case, the Court of Appeal may extend the reversal or reduced sentence to co-defendants who did not appeal.
What is a ground in the nature of the case?
It is a ground that applies to all defendants in the same legal position, such as the offense not being made out or prescription, rather than a ground personal to the appellant.
Related guides on ThaiLawOnline
Cite this section
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Plain citation
Criminal Procedure Code, s. 213 (Thailand) -
Academic citation
Criminal Procedure Code (Thailand), s. 213. ThaiLawOnline, https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-criminal-procedure-code/section-213/ (accessed 11 August 2026). -
Thai citation
ป.วิ.อ. มาตรา 213 -
Permalink
https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-criminal-procedure-code/section-213/ -
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<blockquote cite="https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-criminal-procedure-code/section-213/"><p>In a case where one defendant appeals against a judgment imposing punishment on several defendants for the same offense or connected offenses, if the Court of Appeal reverses or amends the judgment of the court of first instance so as not to punish or to…</p><footer>Criminal Procedure Code, s. 213 (Thailand) — <a href="https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-criminal-procedure-code/section-213/">ThaiLawOnline</a></footer></blockquote>
The Thai text is authoritative. The English is an unofficial translation by ThaiLawOnline, free to reuse with attribution.