Mutual Legal Assistance in Thailand

Transcription

1 Mutual Legal Assistance in Thailand Senior-level Workshop on Mutual Legal Assistance in East-Asia and the Pacific July 11-12, 2012 Bangkok, Thailand Sarun Tirapat Public Prosecutor International Affairs Department Office of the Attorney General

2 Out Line Overview Channels of Cooperation Procedures for Assistance - Rendering assistance to a foreign state - Seeking assistance from a foreign state

3 Overview Relevant Laws and Regulations - The Act on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters B.E (1992) - Regulation of the Central Authority on Providing and seeking Assistance in Criminal Matters B.E (1994) - The Penal Code (Section 32 37) Relevant Agencies/Authorities - Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Office of the Attorney General, Royal Thai Police, Corrections Department, Court of Justice. - Central Authority, Competent Authority

4 Channels of Cooperation Informal Cooperation Quick channel for information exchange, not for testimony. Reciprocity Base Cooperation - Possible without bilateral treaties or multilateral treaties - Requirements: - assurance of reciprocity - dual criminality

5 Channels of Cooperation (2) - Tract: Agency of State A >>> Central Authority (if any) >>> MFA of State A>>> MFA of State B >>> Central Authority (if any) >>> Competent Authority. (Diplomatic Channel) Treaty Base Cooperation - Requirements: - existence of MLAT - usually no dual criminality - specific conditions.

6 Channels of Cooperation (3) - Tract: Agency of State A >>> Central Authority >>> Central Authority of State B >>> Competent Authority. Note: Under Thai Law, evidence obtained from reciprocity base and treaty base cooperation shall be admissible in Court.

7 Procedures for Assistance (4) Rendering assistance to a foreign state - Thailand can render assistance both on reciprocity base and treaty base (Act: Section 9, 10) Reciprocity base: send request through diplomatic channel Treaty base: send request directly to Attorney General (Central Authority) - Requirements: (Regulation: Article 5-13) 1. name of the authority of the Requesting State 2. matters, details/information, relevant laws 3. purpose and necessity

8 Procedures for Assistance (5) 4. details as required for each category of the requests as specified in Article 6 to Article 13 of the Regulation 5. authenticated Thai or English translation (prefer Thai) In case of Forfeiture or Seizure of Property: - descript of the property and its location - forfeiture: final court judgment seizure: court order - must be forfeitable or seizable under Thai laws - the forfeited property shall become property of Thailand (no asset sharing)

9 Procedures for Assistance (6) Note: Without MLAT: - must have reciprocity assurance - must be an offence punishable under Thai laws (Dual criminality) Limitations: - must not relate to a political offence or military offence - must not affect national sovereignty or security or other crucial public interest (of Thailand)

10 Procedures for Assistance (7) Attorney General (Central Authority) (determine whether the request is eligible for assistance or not or on what conditions) >>> Competent Authority (Commissioner of the RTP, Director General of Department of Criminal Litigation, Director General of the Corrections Department) for execution. Result of the execution >>> Attorney General >>> Requesting State (if no treaty: through diplomatic channel)

11 Procedures for Assistance (8) Seeking assistance from foreign state - Send the matter to the Attorney General (Central Authority) (Act: Section 36) - Requirements: (Regulation: Article 17) 1. name of the agency 2. matters, details/information, relevant laws 3. purpose and necessity for seeking assistance 4. details as required for each category of the requests as specified in Article 6 to Article 13 of the Regulation

12 Procedures for Assistance (9) 5. authenticated translation in the language of the Requested State or in English (prefer language of the Requested State) 6. Other requirements according to the laws of the Requested State or Treaty - Tract of the request: (A) without MLAT: Attorney General (Central Authority) > Thai MFA > MFA of Requested State >

13 Procedures for Assistance (10) > Central Authority > Competent Authority (B) with MLAT: Attorney General (Central Authority) > Central Authority of Requested State > Competent Authority Note: evidence obtained under the Act shall be admissible according to law (Act: Section 41)

14 Points to consider Legal aspect Case management aspect Contact person in the Embassy or legal attaché

15 Thank you