In response to regular queries received from our multinational clients, David Lyman, Chairman & Chief Values Officer of Tilleke & Gibbins, has been providing periodic updates on the ongoing political events in Thailand since 2006. This Viewpoint summarizes and updates several of these reports, while providing observations on the Thai political landscape ahead of the upcoming elections.

The Report: Thailand 2011, published by Oxford Business Group, provides an in-depth analysis of various sectors of the Thai economy. In the legal section of the publication, Tilleke & Gibbins examines the government’s recent push for further liberalization of foreign investment laws. In addition to foreign investment, the article examines forms of business organization, capital markets, property law, labor and employment issues, and intellectual property.

Thailand has had insurance companies for over half a century, and the industry is regarded as competent and well regulated. The insurance industry was supervised and regulated by the Ministry of Commerce through the Casualty Insurance Act B.E. 2535 (A.D. 1992) and Life Insurance Act B.E. 2535 (A.D. 1992) until the recent amendments imposed by the Casualty Insurance Act (No. 2) B.E. 2551 (A.D. 2008) and Life Insurance Act (No. 2) B.E. 2551 (A.D. 2008), which transferred the supervisory and regulatory role of the Ministry of Commerce to the Ministry of Finance.

This paper answers a number of important questions about the role of client confidentiality within the Thai legal system. Key points include the regulations governing confidentiality, the limits of attorney-client privilege, and the disclosure of client information in certain situations.