The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) welcomes the President of the Thai Supreme Court’s Recommendations, published in the Government Gazette on 29 May 2026, on the adjudication of cases filed in bad faith. The Recommendations address the longstanding vagueness of Section 161/1 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, one of Thailand’s main legal provisions against the abuse of the judicial process targeting human rights defenders (HRDs) and others speaking out on matters of public interest. Section 161/1 is one of the primary legal tools to combat so-called strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs).
“After years of advocacy by civil society organizations, including the ICJ, and by SLAPP victims themselves, the Thai Supreme Court has finally issued guidance seeking to clarify Section 161/1 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. We hope this will bring some relief to those who have suffered solely for their legitimate exercise of their rights and for speaking out on matters of public concern,” said Mandira Sharma, ICJ Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific.
Section 161/1 of the Code of Criminal Procedure empowers courts to dismiss a case and prohibit its refiling where a private complainant has filed the case in bad faith, distorted facts to harass or take undue advantage of a defendant or sought a benefit to which they are not legally entitled. Despite being in force since 2019, owing to the vagueness of the term “not in good faith”, the uncertainty over the legal procedure and standing to bring a request to have the case struck out, as well as lack of clarity as to whether an inquiry is required or left to judicial discretion, and the absence of any timeframe for the court to act, Section 161/1 has rarely been applied to strike out SLAPP cases. The Recommendations seek to address most of these shortcomings by clarifying the meaning of a prosecution in “bad faith” and identifying specific conduct falling short of Section 161/1. In those circumstances, the Recommendations effectively empower the courts to dismiss such cases at any stage of proceedings.
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