Category: Family Law
Father of the Child – Legitimization in Thailand
What happens when you find out that you might be the father of a child? This scenario happens very often for visitors who come to Thailand. A visitor comes to Thailand on vacation for some fun and adventure. During his holiday, the visitor meets a local Thai girl. They spend a week having fun and […]
Rights and Duties of a Parent and Child in Thailand
The Thai Family Code spells out the rights and duties of a parent and a child in their relationship. Under Thai law, a child born of a marriage or within 310 days of the termination of a marriage is presumed to be the child of the married couple. If the child is born outside of […]
Marriage Between a Thai and a Westerner
What are the conflict of law issues when dealing with the marriage between a Thai national and a foreigner? When there is a dispute between the laws of multiple countries, Thailand looks at its conflict of law rules. Which court has jurisdiction over the case? Which country’s laws are used to decide the issue? Will […]
Prenuptial agreement with clause that restricts certain behavior of the spouses during marriage
Prenuptial agreements are normally meant for couples to agree on how to divide marital or separate property in the event of divorce. However, an interesting legal issue is whether a prenuptial agreement allowed to have a clause that only restricts certain behavior of the spouses during marriage; for example, is a prenuptial agreement allowed to […]
Divorce Scenarios for Foreign Nationals in Thailand
Siam Legal International receives several inquiries every day regarding the divorce process in Thailand. Most of these cases involve a Thai girl living in Thailand and a foreign national returning back to their native country. We will go through different variations of this fact pattern and try to address the issues. “I am a British […]
Validity of Marriage Under Thai Family Law
According to Section 1495 of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code, any marriage that violates the conditions of marriage causes a marriage to be invalid. However, the Code provides that only a court judgment may determine a marriage to be invalid. Sections 1496, 1497. Therefore, an important issue that must be addressed concerns legal standing. […]
Will marriage and divorce in Thailand be recognized in Australia?
Will a marriage in Thailand be recognized in Australia? Generally speaking, Thai marriages will be recognized under Australian law provided the parties to the marriage meet certain conditions. For the marriage in Thailand to be recognized it must have been compliant with Australian law in the following ways: Neither party at the time of the […]
Will a Thai prenuptial be recognized in Australia?
Prenuptial agreements in Australia are referred to by Australian legislation as “binding financial agreements” rather than prenuptials in Thai law. Financial agreements have been introduced into Australian law relatively recently comparative to other Australian family law legislation, through Part 90 of the Family Law Act in 2000. This sets out the various conditions under which […]
U.S. Citizen Adopting a Thai Child
Like the U.S., Thailand is a member of the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect to Intercountry Adoption so you must follow the convention process to adopt the child and bring him or her to the U.S. The convention process includes: Choosing an accredited adoption service provider; Applying to be found […]
How to Marry in Thailand
Thailand is a beautiful country and a wonderful place to get married. Foreigners planning to marry in Thailand are free to marry other foreigners or Thai nationals. They can also register their marriage in Thailand which is recognized by most foreign countries. While a variety of religious marriage ceremonies are available in Thailand, a Thai […]
