Droit Administratif Thai Style: A Comparative Analysis of the Administrative Courts in Thailand

Abstract

A system of Administrative Courts was set up for the first time in Thailand as an important part of the new Thai Constitution of 1997. After dealing with issues raised in undertaking comparative analysis, this article traces the background to the introduction of the court, with particular reference to the strong influence of the French system of droit administratif in the development of the Council of State in Thailand, and in the conception of the current Thai system of administrative justice. The discussion proceeds to consider the institutional safeguards which were put in place to secure the independence of the Administrative Courts. The following sections deal with the characteristics of the court, which are mainly discussed in terms of its jurisdictional limits, the grounds set out for its intervention, the remedies it is able to award, and its work load. Finally, some of the court’s significant judgments are considered in the context of the current constitutional situation in Thailand.