A court in Thailand dismissed a royal insult case on Friday against influential former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, clearing the first hurdle in a series of high-stakes court rulings involving the powerful Shinawatra political dynasty.

Thailand's billionaire Shinawatra family is bracing for a series of high-stakes court decisions starting Friday that could test its political resilience, with the prospect of an early election and prolonged trouble for the country's stuttering economy.