An ex-lawyer is tipped to become a cabinet minister despite having served jail time over the so-called "cash-stuffed paper bag" scandal representing former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in a controversial land case in 2008.
Pichit Chuenban is expected to serve as the PM's Office Minister under the Pheu Thai-led coalition government, according to sources.
On June 25, 2008, the Supreme Court sentenced Mr Pichit and two of his colleagues to six months each in jail for contempt of court after they tried to bribe Supreme Court officials by handing them a paper bag containing two million baht in cash a fortnight earlier.
All three represented Thaksin and his ex-wife, Khunying Potjaman na Pombejra, in the Ratchadaphisek land case, for which Thaksin was sentenced to two years in prison in 2008.
Mr Pichit was among 10 people who visited Thaksin at the Police General Hospital on Monday, according to the sources.
A vice dean at Rangsit University's faculty of law said Mr Pichit is not qualified to hold a cabinet post as he served jail time for attempted bribery.
Even though he was released over a decade ago and is not barred from joining the new cabinet, his past conduct creates a difficult ethical situation, he said.
