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Supreme Court Decision (Dika) No. 284/2569, published in late July 2026, answers a question our firm hears constantly from heirs: “It has been more than a year, is it too late to claim my Thai inheritance?” The Court’s answer: not when the estate administrator has been dealing with estate property for her own benefit. This article explains the decision, the one-year prescription rule in Section 1754 of the Civil and Commercial Code, and the powerful exception in Section 1748 that kept the heirs’ claim alive more than two decades after the deceased passed away.
Table of Contents
The facts of Dika 284/2569: an estate administrator who kept the land
The deceased, Mr. Perm, died in December 1993. He had seven children, three of whom died before him, two of them leaving descendants who inherit in their place. One of the children, Ms. Anong, was appointed estate administrator by the court in 1994 and took the land into her name as administrator in 1995. Twenty years later, in July 2015, instead of distributing the disputed plot among the heirs as the law requires, she registered it in her own name personally. From there, the land moved through a chain of gift transfers and ended in the hands of the defendant, himself one of the heirs, who subdivided the land and sold part of it for 3,000,000 baht.
The other heirs sued, asking the court to order the land back into the estate and to recover the sale proceeds. The defendant pleaded that the claim was time-barred under Section 1754 of the Civil and Commercial Code (the one-year prescription period for inheritance claims). For their part, the heirs asked the court to exclude the defendant from the inheritance altogether under Section 1605 for concealing or misappropriating estate property, which the trial court and the Court of Appeal did.
The chain of transfers
| Step | Transfer | Legal character |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mr. Perm dies (1993); land devolves on 7 heirs | Succession opens, CCC Section 1599 |
| 2 | Ms. Anong, estate administrator, registers the land in her own name | Administration act, not a distribution |
| 3 | Ms. Anong transfers the land by gift to Ms. Saovalak | Gratuitous transfer of estate property |
| 4 | After the defendant files a criminal complaint against both women, Ms. Saovalak transfers the land to the defendant (an heir), registered as a gift (2018) | Gratuitous transfer of estate property |
| 5 | Defendant subdivides and sells part of the land for THB 3,000,000 | Disposal of estate property |
The one-year rule: Section 1754 of the Civil and Commercial Code
Section 1754 CCC bars an action concerning inheritance brought by an heir more than one year after the death, or after the heir knew (or ought to have known) of the death, with an absolute outer limit of ten years from the death. On paper, a claim filed decades after a 1993 death looks hopeless. Estate administrators, and people who receive property from them, frequently rely on this section to shut heirs out.
The law behind this page
English
Section 1754
An inheritance claim is barred one year after the death, or after the statutory heir knew or ought to have known of the death. A claim under a will is barred one year after the legatee knew or ought to have known of the right. Subject to Section 193/27 (which preserves a secured creditor's right to enforce against the mortgaged, pledged or retained property), a creditor whose claim against the deceased has a prescription period longer than one year must sue within one year after he knew or ought to have known of the death. In every case no claim may be brought more than ten years after the death.
Full text
No action concerning an estate may be brought after one year from the death of the deceased, or from the time when the statutory heir knew or ought to have known of the death of the deceased. An action claiming under a provision of a will may not be brought after one year from the time when the legatee knew or ought to have known of the right that the legatee has under the will. Subject to section 193/27 of this Code, where a creditor's claim against the deceased has a prescription period longer than one year, that creditor may not bring an action after one year from the time when the creditor knew or ought to have known of the death of the deceased. In any event, the claims referred to in the preceding paragraphs may not be brought after ten years from the death of the deceased.
ThaiLawOnline translation
Section 1748
Full text
An heir in possession of an undivided estate is entitled to claim its division even after the period of prescription under Section 1754 has expired. The right to claim division under the preceding paragraph cannot be excluded by juristic act for more than ten years at a time.
ThaiLawOnline translation
Section 1605
Full text
An heir who has fraudulently, or knowing that it is to the detriment of the other heirs, removed or concealed property of the estate of an amount equal to or exceeding his share shall be excluded from the inheritance altogether; but if he has removed or concealed property of the estate of an amount less than his share, he shall be excluded only as to the part so removed or concealed. This section does not apply to a legatee to whom the deceased by will gave a specific property, in respect of receiving that property.
ThaiLawOnline translation
Section 1719
The estate administrator (court-appointed or named in the will) has both the power and the duty to carry out the will's instructions, manage the estate's day-to-day affairs, and distribute assets to heirs.
Full text
The administrator of the estate has the right and the duty to do all acts necessary to carry out the express or implied directions of the will, and to administer the estate in general or to distribute the estate property.
ThaiLawOnline translation
Section 1745
Full text
Where there are several heirs, they have rights and duties in the estate in common until the estate has been divided, and Sections 1356 to 1366 of this Code apply so far as they are not contrary to the provisions of this Book.
ThaiLawOnline translation
Section 1599
When a person dies, the estate passes to the heirs. An heir can lose the right to the estate only under a provision of this Code or of another law.
Full text
When a person dies, that person's estate devolves on the heirs. An heir may lose the right to the estate only under the provisions of this Code or of other laws.
ThaiLawOnline translation
Section 1755
The one-year prescription on inheritance claims may be raised only by an heir, by a person entitled to exercise an heir's rights, or by an administrator of the estate. Anyone else sued in connection with the estate cannot set it up as a defence.
Full text
The one-year prescription may be set up only by an heir, by a person entitled to exercise an heir's rights, or by an administrator of the estate.
ThaiLawOnline translation
ไทย
มาตรา 1754
ข้อความเต็ม
ห้ามมิให้ฟ้องคดีมรดกเมื่อพ้นกำหนดหนึ่งปี นับแต่เมื่อเจ้ามรดกตาย หรือนับแต่เมื่อทายาทโดยธรรมได้รู้ หรือควรได้รู้ถึงความตายของเจ้ามรดก คดีฟ้องเรียกตามข้อกำหนดพินัยกรรม มิให้ฟ้องเมื่อพ้นกำหนดหนึ่งปีนับแต่เมื่อผู้รับพินัยกรรมได้รู้หรือควรได้รู้ถึงสิทธิซึ่งตนมีอยู่ตามพินัยกรรม ภายใต้บังคับแห่งมาตรา ๑๙๓/๒๗ แห่งประมวลกฎหมายนี้ ถ้าสิทธิเรียกร้องของเจ้าหนี้อันมีต่อเจ้ามรดกมีกำหนดอายุความยาวกว่าหนึ่งปี มิให้เจ้าหนี้นั้นฟ้องร้องเมื่อพ้นกำหนดหนึ่งปีนับแต่เมื่อเจ้าหนี้ได้รู้ หรือควรได้รู้ถึงความตายของเจ้ามรดก ถึงอย่างไรก็ดี สิทธิเรียกร้องตามที่ว่ามาในวรรคก่อน ๆ นั้น มิให้ฟ้องร้องเมื่อพ้นกำหนดสิบปีนับแต่เมื่อเจ้ามรดกตาย หมายเหตุ: [เลขมาตรา ๑๙๓/๒๗ แก้ไขเพิ่มเติมโดยมาตรา ๑๕ แห่งพระราชบัญญัติให้ใช้บทบัญญัติบรรพ ๑ แห่งประมวลกฎหมายแพ่งและพาณิชย์ที่ได้ตรวจชำระใหม่ พ.ศ. ๒๕๓๕]
ตรงตามข้อความในราชกิจจานุเบกษา / สำนักงานคณะกรรมการกฤษฎีกา (Verbatim from the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State)
มาตรา 1748
ข้อความเต็ม
ทายาทคนใดครอบครองทรัพย์มรดกซึ่งยังมิได้แบ่งกัน ทายาทคนนั้นมีสิทธิที่จะเรียกร้องให้แบ่งทรัพย์มรดกนั้นได้ แม้ว่าจะล่วงพ้นกำหนดอายุความตามมาตรา ๑๗๕๔ แล้วก็ดี สิทธิที่จะเรียกให้แบ่งทรัพย์มรดกตามวรรคก่อน จะตัดโดยนิติกรรมเกินคราวละสิบปีไม่ได้
ตรงตามข้อความในราชกิจจานุเบกษา / สำนักงานคณะกรรมการกฤษฎีกา (Verbatim from the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State)
มาตรา 1605
ข้อความเต็ม
ทายาทคนใดยักย้าย หรือปิดบังทรัพย์มรดกเท่าส่วนที่ตนจะได้หรือมากกว่านั้นโดยฉ้อฉลหรือรู้อยู่ว่า ตนทำให้เสื่อมประโยชน์ของทายาทคนอื่น ทายาทคนนั้นต้องถูกกำจัดมิให้ได้มรดกเลย แต่ถ้าได้ยักย้ายหรือปิดบังทรัพย์มรดกน้อยกว่าส่วนที่ตนจะได้ ทายาทคนนั้นต้องถูกกำจัดมิให้ได้มรดกเฉพาะส่วนที่ได้ยักย้ายหรือปิดบังไว้นั้นมาตรานี้มิให้ใช้บังคับแก่ผู้รับพินัยกรรม ซึ่งผู้ตายได้ทำพินัยกรรมยกทรัพย์สินให้เฉพาะสิ่งเฉพาะอย่าง ในอันที่จะได้รับทรัพย์สินนั้น
ตรงตามข้อความในราชกิจจานุเบกษา / สำนักงานคณะกรรมการกฤษฎีกา (Verbatim from the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State)
มาตรา 1719
ข้อความเต็ม
ผู้จัดการมรดกมีสิทธิและหน้าที่ที่จะทำการอันจำเป็นเพื่อให้การเป็นไปตามคำสั่งแจ้งชัดหรือโดยปริยายแห่งพินัยกรรม และเพื่อจัดการมรดกโดยทั่วไป หรือเพื่อแบ่งปันทรัพย์มรดก
ตรงตามข้อความในราชกิจจานุเบกษา / สำนักงานคณะกรรมการกฤษฎีกา (Verbatim from the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State)
มาตรา 1745
ข้อความเต็ม
ถ้ามีทายาทหลายคน ทายาทเหล่านั้นมีสิทธิและหน้าที่เกี่ยวกับทรัพย์มรดกร่วมกันจนกว่าจะได้แบ่งมรดกกันเสร็จแล้ว และให้ใช้มาตรา ๑๓๕๖ ถึงมาตรา ๑๓๖๖ แห่งประมวลกฎหมายนี้บังคับ เพียงเท่าที่ไม่ขัดกับบทบัญญัติแห่งบรรพนี้
ตรงตามข้อความในราชกิจจานุเบกษา / สำนักงานคณะกรรมการกฤษฎีกา (Verbatim from the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State)
มาตรา 1599
ข้อความเต็ม
เมื่อบุคคลใดตาย มรดกของบุคคลนั้นตกทอดแก่ทายาท ทายาทอาจเสียไปซึ่งสิทธิในมรดกได้แต่โดยบทบัญญัติแห่งประมวลกฎหมายนี้หรือกฎหมายอื่น
ตรงตามข้อความในราชกิจจานุเบกษา / สำนักงานคณะกรรมการกฤษฎีกา (Verbatim from the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State)
มาตรา 1755
ข้อความเต็ม
อายุความหนึ่งปีนั้น จะยกขึ้นต่อสู้ได้ก็แต่โดยบุคคลซึ่งเป็นทายาท หรือบุคคลซึ่งชอบที่จะใช้สิทธิของทายาท หรือโดยผู้จัดการมรดก
ตรงตามข้อความในราชกิจจานุเบกษา / สำนักงานคณะกรรมการกฤษฎีกา (Verbatim from the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State)
Français
Article 1754
Aucune action successorale ne peut être intentée après l'expiration d'un délai d'un an à compter du décès du de cujus, ou à compter du moment où l'héritier légal a eu connaissance ou aurait dû avoir connaissance du décès du de cujus. L'action fondée sur une disposition testamentaire ne peut être intentée après l'expiration d'un délai d'un an à compter du moment où le légataire a eu connaissance ou aurait dû avoir connaissance du droit qu'il tient du testament. Sous réserve de l'article 193/27 du présent Code, lorsque la créance d'un créancier contre le de cujus est soumise à un délai de prescription supérieur à un an, ce créancier ne peut agir en justice après l'expiration d'un délai d'un an à compter du moment où il a eu connaissance ou aurait dû avoir connaissance du décès du de cujus. En tout état de cause, les droits visés aux alinéas précédents ne peuvent être exercés en justice après l'expiration d'un délai de dix ans à compter du décès du de cujus.
résumé non officiel
Article 1748
L'héritier qui possède des biens successoraux non encore partagés peut en demander le partage, même après l'expiration du délai de prescription de l'article 1754. Ce droit au partage ne peut être exclu par acte juridique pour une durée supérieure à dix ans à la fois.
résumé non officiel
Article 1605
L'héritier qui détourne ou dissimule, frauduleusement ou en sachant nuire aux autres héritiers, des biens successoraux d'une valeur égale ou supérieure à sa part est exclu de toute la succession. Si la valeur est inférieure à sa part, il n'est exclu qu'à concurrence de ce qu'il a détourné ou dissimulé. Cet article ne s'applique pas au légataire d'un bien déterminé, quant à ce bien.
résumé non officiel
Article 1719
L'administrateur de la succession a le droit et le devoir d'accomplir les actes nécessaires pour exécuter les dispositions expresses ou implicites du testament, ainsi que pour administrer la succession en général ou pour partager les biens successoraux.
résumé non officiel
Article 1745
Lorsqu'il y a plusieurs héritiers, ils ont en commun les droits et obligations relatifs à la succession jusqu'à la fin du partage. Les articles 1356 à 1366 du présent Code s'appliquent, dans la mesure où ils ne sont pas contraires aux dispositions du présent livre.
résumé non officiel
Article 1599
Au décès d'une personne, sa succession est dévolue à ses héritiers. Un héritier ne peut perdre ses droits sur la succession qu'en vertu des dispositions du présent Code ou d'autres lois.
résumé non officiel
Article 1755
La prescription d'un an ne peut être opposée que par un héritier, par une personne habilitée à exercer les droits d'un héritier ou par l'administrateur de la succession.
résumé non officiel
Supreme Court decisions
- 2526/2531 (1988): Estate bound by construction lease, registration claim time-barred
Sources
- Civil and Commercial Code, Office of the Council of State, retrieved 31 October 2026
- deka.supremecourt.or.th, Supreme Court of Thailand decisions database (copy held in our library), retrieved 19 February 2026
The exception that saved the heirs: Section 1748
The Supreme Court held the claim was not time-barred. Under Section 1748 CCC, an heir who is in possession of estate property that has not yet been distributed may demand partition of that property even after the one-year period in Section 1754 has expired. The key legal move in Dika 284/2569 is this: when an estate administrator registers estate land in her own name and passes it around by gift instead of distributing it to the heirs, the administration of the estate is not lawfully completed, and the property is still treated as undistributed estate property. The administrator holds it, in effect, on behalf of all the heirs, so the prescription clock in Section 1754 does not defeat the co-heirs’ right to demand their shares.
The Court also relied on Section 1719 (the administrator’s rights and duties to administer and distribute the estate): an administrator appointed by the court holds estate land on behalf of the other heirs, so a transfer to herself personally is not a good-faith distribution and does not complete the administration. Because the land and the sale money were still undistributed estate property under administration, the heirs could sue for partition although the one-year period had passed.
No disinheritance under Section 1605, a note of caution both ways
Interestingly, the Supreme Court reversed the lower court on one point in the defendant’s favour: he was not excluded from the succession under Section 1605, which strips an heir who fraudulently conceals or misappropriates estate property of his status as heir (entirely, or in proportion to what was taken). The reason was the defendant’s state of mind. He had obtained the land through the settlement of his own criminal complaint, nobody recorded that he was to hold it for all the heirs, and he understood that the administration was finished and the land was his. Section 1605 requires fraud or knowledge that the other heirs are being prejudiced, and that was not shown. The practical result: the defendant kept his own inheritance share, but had to (1) transfer the remaining land back into the estate for distribution, and (2) return 2,500,000 baht, five-sixths of the 3,000,000 baht sale proceeds, corresponding to the other heirs’ shares, to the estate.
Why this decision matters to foreigners and cross-border families
Our firm regularly acts for foreign heirs, children living abroad, foreign spouses of Thai nationals, and expats inheriting Thai assets. This decision matters to them for three reasons.
Distance invites self-dealing. When heirs live in Europe, North America or Australia, a locally appointed administrator (often a Thai relative) controls the paperwork at the Land Office. Heirs abroad frequently discover years later that estate land was quietly registered in the administrator’s name. Dika 284/2569 confirms that discovery years later is not necessarily fatal to a claim.
Gift transfers give no shelter. Each onward transfer of the plot in this case was a gift, and the Court treated the land as still undistributed estate property in the defendant’s hands. The part the defendant had sold to outside buyers stayed with them; he returned the sale money instead. Family members who receive estate land “for free” from an administrator should expect to give it back.
The one-year rule is not the end of the analysis. Many potential clients are wrongly told that Thai inheritance claims simply die after one year. The correct question is whether the estate was ever properly administered and distributed. If not, Section 1748 and the rules on undistributed estate property keep the door open. For the general framework, see our complete guide to inheritance law in Thailand for foreigners and our step-by-step guide to probate and estate administration in Thailand.
Practical lessons for heirs and administrators
If you are an heir
Obtain copies of the title deeds and check the current registered owner at the Land Office; do not rely on family assurances. If the administrator has registered estate property in his or her own name, demand distribution in writing and consult a lawyer promptly. Section 1748 helped these heirs, but litigation decades after the fact is far harder and more expensive than acting early. If there is no will, understand who inherits by law: our article on dying without a will in Thailand explains the six classes of statutory heirs.
If you are (or will appoint) an estate administrator
An administrator who transfers estate property to herself outside a lawful distribution is exposed to civil claims with no practical prescription shelter, removal by the court, and in serious cases criminal liability for misappropriation. Foreigners making a Thai will should also choose their executor with this case in mind, see our review of 10 Thai Supreme Court decisions every foreigner making a will should know.
Last reviewed: 28 September 2026. Supreme Court decision 284/2569 was read in Thai to its disposition, with Civil and Commercial Code sections 1599, 1605, 1719, 1745, 1748, 1754 and 1755. The published text of the judgment also cites a section 1784, which does not exist in the Code; this article does not rely on it. Statements about foreign heirs and criminal liability of administrators are general practice.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a deadline to claim an inheritance in Thailand?
Yes. Section 1754 CCC generally requires inheritance actions within one year of the death (or knowledge of it), capped at ten years. But where estate property was never lawfully distributed, for example because the administrator kept it, Section 1748 allows heirs to demand partition even after those periods.
What happens if a Thai estate administrator transfers property to themselves?
The transfer does not complete the administration. The property remains estate property held for all heirs, and the heirs can sue to bring it back into the estate even from a later holder, as they did in Dika 284/2569.
Can an heir who misuses estate property lose their inheritance?
Section 1605 CCC excludes an heir who fraudulently conceals or misappropriates estate property, wholly or partly. However, the courts apply this sanction restrictively, in Dika 284/2569 the defendant heir was not excluded, though he had to return the land and most of the sale money.
Can a foreigner bring an inheritance claim in a Thai court?
Yes. Foreign heirs have standing before Thai courts and can act through a Thai lawyer under a power of attorney without necessarily travelling to Thailand. Whether a foreigner can keep inherited land long-term is a separate question, see our guide on inheritance law for foreigners.
Does it matter that the property was given away rather than sold?
Yes. Recipients by gift are not protected as purchasers in good faith for value, so estate property that moved by gift is much easier to claw back into the estate.
This article was written and reviewed by Sébastien Brousseau, LL.B., B.Sc., who has been based in Thailand since 2004 and has run ThaiLawOnline since 2006. If you are an heir to a Thai estate, suspect an administrator is mishandling estate property, or need help planning your own Thai succession, contact ThaiLawOnline for a consultation in English or French.
Disclaimer: this article is general legal information based on a published Supreme Court decision summary, not legal advice. Outcomes depend on the specific facts of each case; consult a qualified Thai lawyer about your situation.
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