Preeda  Saiupparat  began his legal career as Head of Lawyers Office at Upparat Law Office Chiang Mai, Thailand. He is currently a pro bono human rights and environmental lawyer for the Lawyer’s Council of Thailand Under The Royal Patronage, a Notaries  Public Services lawyer and a Steering Committee Member for the Pro Bono Network for Users. Born in Lampang, Thailand and having lived in Chiang Mai for many years, Preeda has dedicated his professional legal career to providing quality and ethical legal services to clients in both Northern Thailand and throughout the country. Prior to his becoming a lawyer Preeda studied and graduated with honors from the Chiang Mai University Faculty of Law in 2009. While there he excelled in both his academic career as well as his commitment to social justice where he was a core team member of the CMU Legal Clinic programme where he was a clinic student leader between 2006-2208.. These experiences led Preeda to undertake a commitment to providing pro bono legal services for underprivileged people and providing legal knowledge to prisoners in Thailand. This has also included funding a foundation for underprivileged children, including providing scholarship for students in rural schools. He is a former full time team member of the international not-for-profit access to justice, legal education organization BABSEACLE and continues to volunteer with BABSEACLE, providing assistance in legal related workshop training and community service. Preeda is also one of the core founding members of the Asia Pro Bono Consortium and has regularly contributed and helped in the strengthening of the Asia Pro Bono Conference.  

Preeda  Saiupparat  has experience in a wide range of practice including  including property/real estate, business registration, civil law and litigation, arbitration, contract law and personal injury. He also has a specialization in criminal law and procedure where he has conducted many criminal law trials and hearings on a variety of criminal law topics. His criminal law practice area has gained him a positive reputation both in Thailand and throughout the region, where he has presented many times on the legal representation and advocacy work he has been involved in. Preeda brings to Lanna Lawyers a deep knowledge and understanding of both the Thailand legal system as well as a comparative knowledge, understanding and best practice application of other jurisdictions worldwide.   He also is fluent in both Thai and English language and has applied these skills in a professional manner related to formal interpretation and translation.    

Human Rights Lawyer- Lawyer Council of Thailand Under The Royal Patronage Notaries  Public Services Lawyers Steering Committee Member-Pro Bono Network for Users.

Bruce is a U.S. born citizen, and a resident of Chiang Mai, Thailand since 2007. He has been a  member of the State of Florida Bar Association, beginning in 1991. After completing a Bachelor of Arts, with Honors, at the University of Florida in 1988, he studied law at the University of Florida School of Law, receiving his Juris Doctorate in 1991.  Bruce then went on to receive a Masters in International Human Rights Law, graduating with Honors and receiving the Outstanding Graduate Achievement Award from Central European University in 2002.

He began his legal career in 1991 as a practicing criminal legal aid attorney. Since that time he has had more than 17 years of experience providing legal assistance and legal support throughout many countries in Asia, and globally.

In addition to his legal assistance work, he has also been appointed as a visiting Law Lecturer at a number of universities throughout Asia, including Chiang Mai University, as well as Australia.  Bruce has also assisted a number of governments in legislative drafting and review.

Bruce is credited as being one of the pioneering members in assisting in the strengthening Asia Pro Bono Movement and is a member of the International Organizing Committee Member of the regionally developed Asia Pro Bono Consortium.  He is also the Co-Founder and Co-Director of the International Access to Justice Organization, BABSEACLE and is a Board of Director for the Southeast Asia Legal Aid Network (SEALAW), the Global Alliance for Justice Education (GAJE) and the child protection/community development organization, Sustainable Cambodia (SC).

Initially, from 1991-1999 Bruce practiced in the area of criminal law, providing legal aid services to those in need and unable to afford a lawyer.  From 1999 onward Bruce expanded his area of practice into a more general focus including business, contract law, property, wills and estates, corporate registration and compliance, estate planning and personal injury. This also has included a concentration on the development of a strong system incorporating legal ethics and client-centered lawyering   In-line with his values and his legal experiences, Bruce also has spent a significant amount of time assisting in the development of legal aid related programmes in both Thailand and globally.

Bruce has been a professional legal trainer for lawyers, law societies, paralegals and others worldwide. He has written articles and book chapters on a variety of substantive law and access to justice thematic topics and has been published widely. He has presented at, and facilitated, countless legal related conferences and workshops worldwide focusing on access to justice, client centered lawyering, legal ethics and pro bono practice.

Bruce brings to Lanna Lawyers many years’ experience in most areas of general practice including business law and corporations, contract law, personal injury, wills and estates and property law. He also brings to the firm his many years of training and practice in criminal law and procedure.

It is important to note, while Bruce is a licensed lawyer in the State of Florida USA, he is not licensed to practice law in Thailand. His role in the Firm is generally to assist the Thai legal team in the consultation and communication functions with non-Thai/English speaking clients, and manage the interaction with these clients.  All official legal actions, including working and communicating with administrative agencies, and all court appearances are attended and performed by licensed Thai lawyers.

Member, Florida Bar Association 1991-present
Member, U.S. Federal Court of Florida, Southern, Middle and Northern Districts 2001-present
Director-BABSEACLE 2002-present
Director-Sustainable Cambodia 2003-present
Director-Global Alliance for Justice Education 2011-present
Member-Asia Pro Bono Consortium 2012-present
Director-South East Asia Legal Aid Network 2015-present

Kritsadaporn Suriyawon (nicknamed Fai) graduated with a Bachelor of Law degree from Chiang Mai University (CMU) in 2012. After graduating from CMU she worked in the financial department of the Thanachart Bank Public Company Limited Bank for 2 years. In 2017, Fai graduated with a Diploma of Accounting. Fai has been working at Upparat Law Office, and Lanna Lawyers, as a paralegal and accountant since 2018.