A landmark court case where an unlawfully revoked ownership certificate was revoked could be cold comfort to an investor who is currently $4 million baht out of pocket, prompting BSA Law, a top Thai law firm, to urge due diligence on all property purchases.
BSA Law is urging property investors to conduct due diligence on their purchases, following a case where an unlawfully issued ownership certificate was revoked. The case has left the investor in question $4 million baht out of pocket, currently.
The case involved a condominium development in Hua Hin, where on the construction plans an area was marked as an elevator maintenance area, while on the condo registration papers it was marked as a unit. It was sold as a unit, and on-sold twice. The current owner paid $4 million baht for it.
Thailand's Supreme Court recently revoked the ownership certificate, determining that it was unlawfully issued. This paves the way for a civil suit looking for compensation of the purchase price to the investor by the Land Department.
Chaiyos Hemarajata is a special adviser at BSA Law, and cautions investors that due diligence is the only way to ensure that you are not exposing yourself to an enormous financial loss. "Despite the fact that the investor won the case, it may be several years before she sees her money back. If the person at fault had been a private company, the investor might never be recompensed"
"Conducting due diligence is the only way to ensure that you are not exposing yourself to a huge loss. A simple site visit would have cleared up this anomaly in the plans", Mr Hemarajata continued.
Thailand law may have set a precedent in favor of the investor in this case, but in other circumstances and disputes the result may differ, especially if due diligence processes are not conducted, advises BSA Law's team.
About BSA Law:
For nearly 30 years, Bamrung Suvicha Apisakdi Law Associates (BSA Law) has focused on providing reliable legal advice and services to the Thai and foreign business community in Thailand. BSA Law seeks to provide international standards of legal services while retaining the customs of the Thai business culture.
For more information please contact:
Jim Byrne
Business Advisor, BSA Law.
Email: jim@bsalaw.co.th
