Voidability of Administrative Contract

Abstract

         This article studies the scope of application of the voidable principle of the Thailand Civil and Commercial Code (TCCC) for administrative contracts in the French and German legal systems and results of applying the principle of voidability under TCCC to administrative contracts.Qualitative research was done,focusing on the background and basic idea of the administrative contract; principle of illegal administrative contracts in France, Germany and Thailand; and history, background and principle of contract voidability and its effect, including application by the Administrative Court according to TCCC administrative contract cases.

         Results were that administrative contracts in the Thai legal system have fundamentally different principles from civil contracts. Administrative contracts are government administrative instruments for achieving results while providing public service. However, the Administrative Court, with jurisdiction to adjudicate administrative contract cases, has caused voidability in effects according to the TCCC to be applied to administrative contracts. Therefore, administrative agencies and private individuals among contractual parties may claim administrative contract voidability and terminate them, rendering it impossible for administrative contract public service provision to be achieved. These findings suggest that to determine the scope for applying the voidability principle to administrative contract according to the TCCC, if voidable act occurs in an administrative contract, the outcome should be determined differently from civil contracts.