As we come to the end of 2017, Thailand Bail reflects on the year that was 2017. We would like to wish all of our past clients in 2017, as well as our current clients going into 2018 together with us, a happy new year 2018. 2017 was a successful year for the firm, having won several huge criminal cases in the courts of Bangkok, Pattaya, Buriram, Udon Thani, and Phuket, amongst others. 2017 also saw a significant crackdown on immigration issues, particularly automatic blacklisting for even 1 day of overstay, if not self-reported. This has presented a challenge to foreigners who would have normally let a few days of overstay slip, as a matter of convenience or cost. 2017 also saw our firm expand into Cambodia for the first time, representing a well-known defendant there. Thailand Bail looks forward to another successful year in 2018, assisting both foreign and Thai defendants and plaintiffs manage their criminal cases, immigration cases, and civil cases to a winning end. Below, we discuss in our final post for the 2017 year the changes to applying for bail in the Thai courts.

Applying for Bail at Certain Thai Courts Gets More Difficult

This past year in 2017 saw a push by the courts of Thailand to increase the complexity and difficulty in applying for bail in certain courts. Additional documents, proof of identification beyond was was previously required, proof of funds in cash, and penalties for those who guarantee defendants who ignore the conditions of their bail have all been enacted in 2017. Previously, each court had a standard bail form that was used for the application for bail from the Thai court. This form still exists, but additional documents to establish a position of credibility have been added. Thailand Bail’s lawyers have updated our knowledge set on each of the main 30 courts that we work in, from the Bangkok Criminal Court all the way to smaller courts such as the Mukdahan Provincial Court.

Those who serve as bail guarantor now must also provide several new documents to prove a relationship with the defendant. This relationship should be a professional one, between lawyer and client, in order to provide the highest guarantee for the defendant when out on bail. In addition, we have had to gather certified copies of various legal documents prior to applying

for bail for our clients.

The courts have now also been asking to see cash in hand before allowing the bail application to proceed. This means that we must withdraw funds and bring them to the court for review. We have experience doing this, and have handled bail amounts of 10,000 THB – 2,000,000 THB for our clients this year in various Thai courts.

Finally, the act of being the guarantor has taken a more prominent position in the Thai courts this year. In the past, the duties of the bail guarantor were minimal, and the penalties for bail guarantors who represented defendants who did not show up for court or otherwise violate the conditions of their bail were low. In 2017, Thailand Bail saw its role as bail guarantor increase in importance. Thailand Bail’s lawyers still prepare all necessary documents for bail, but now we must take extra precautions to select those defendants who we believe will follow the conditions set by the Thai court for bail.