Our Practice
A Practice Built on Patience and Discretion
Phueng Counsel has served families in the upper northeast for over a decade — attending to inheritance matters with the care they require.
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How Phueng Counsel Came to Be
Phueng Counsel was established in Udon Thani in 2012 by a small group of legal professionals who had each spent years working on estate and succession matters at larger firms in Bangkok. They wanted to bring the same quality of counsel to families in the upper northeast — where the need was real but the access to specialist legal advice was limited.
The name comes from the Thai word for a bee — an image the founders chose deliberately. The work of inheritance law is careful, quiet, and persistent. It requires attention to detail, a willingness to move at the right pace rather than the fastest pace, and a genuine commitment to the families being served.
Over the years, the practice has remained deliberately small. We do not take on more work than we can attend to properly. Each file is known in full by the lead counsel handling it, and clients are never passed between team members without a complete and careful handover.
Our Mission
What Guides Our Work
Serve the family, not the file
Inheritance matters are rarely just legal. They involve relationships, histories, and futures. We hold that context in mind throughout.
Write everything down
Families should leave every engagement with a written record they can read, keep, and pass to others if needed. Verbal understandings are not enough.
Disclose costs fully, in advance
No family should receive a bill that surprises them. We confirm all fees in writing before work begins, and explain any third-party costs before they arise.
Maintain full confidentiality
The details of a family's estate are private. They remain so — within our office and in all external communications on the file.
The People
Our Legal Team
A small, experienced team — each member focused on a specific area of inheritance and succession law.
Suwanna Rattanachai
Lead Counsel — Estate & Succession
Suwanna has practised inheritance law for seventeen years, with particular experience in multi-generational succession planning and cross-border estate coordination.
Pichit Kraiwong
Counsel — Trust Structures & Documentation
Pichit specialises in the drafting and establishment of trust arrangements, with a focus on clarity of documentation and the practical administration of family trusts over time.
Nattaya Thongkham
Senior Associate — Tax & Compliance
Nattaya leads on the tax aspects of our inheritance work — reviewing liability positions, advising on timing of distributions, and coordinating with tax counsel in other jurisdictions when required.
Professional Standards
How We Maintain the Quality of Our Work
Our professional standards are not aspirations — they are working practices, applied consistently across every file we handle.
Registered Legal Practice
Phueng Counsel is registered with the Lawyers Council of Thailand and operates in full compliance with the applicable professional conduct rules.
Engagement Letters on Every File
Every engagement begins with a written letter confirming scope, fee, and expected timeline. No work commences without this document being signed by both parties.
Professional Indemnity Cover
We maintain professional indemnity insurance appropriate to the scope of our practice, providing clients with an additional layer of assurance on each engagement.
Data and Document Security
Client documents and personal data are held on secure, encrypted systems. Physical files are kept in locked storage. Access is limited to the team members working on each file.
Continuing Legal Education
Our legal team participates in continuing education each year — staying current with changes in Thailand's inheritance tax provisions, trust law, and cross-border succession frameworks.
Client Feedback Process
At the close of each engagement, we ask clients to share their experience of the work and our communication. This feedback is reviewed regularly and informs how we develop our practice.
Our Approach
Inheritance Law in the Upper Northeast
Thailand's inheritance legal landscape has developed considerably over the past decade. The introduction of formal inheritance tax provisions, combined with an increasing number of families holding property across more than one jurisdiction, has made careful legal counsel more relevant — and more necessary — than it was in earlier years.
Phueng Counsel's practice is grounded in this specific legal environment. We work primarily with families in Udon Thani and the surrounding provinces, advising on the Thai law aspects of their estate matters while coordinating with qualified counsel elsewhere when international elements are involved.
Our work spans three main areas: reviewing the tax position of a particular inheritance before distribution proceeds; establishing trust structures for families who wish to hold property in a more managed arrangement; and producing longer-term estate plans for families with substantial or complex holdings.
The upper northeast has its own character — longer-established family land holdings, family businesses that have developed over several generations, and multi-generational households that require careful thought about succession. We understand this context, and it shapes the advice we give.
We do not position ourselves as the largest practice in the region, nor the fastest. We are careful, experienced, and available to families who want the work done properly and with discretion.
Work With Us
Speak with Our Team
An initial conversation carries no obligation. It is simply a chance to understand your situation and consider whether we are well-placed to assist.
Arrange a Consultation