The Law Courts Building is a building on Queen's Square in Sydney, Australia. It is the seat of the

Supreme Court of New South Wales The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian State of New South Wales. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil matters, and hears the most serious criminal matters. Whilst the Supreme Court ...

, as well as parts of the

Federal Court of Australia The Federal Court of Australia is an Australian superior court of record which has jurisdiction to deal with most civil disputes governed by federal law (with the exception of family law matters), along with some summary (less serious) and indic ...

and the

High Court of Australia The High Court of Australia is Australia's apex court. It exercises original and appellate jurisdiction on matters specified within Australia's Constitution. The High Court was established following passage of the ''Judiciary Act 1903''. It ...

Building

The building is 114 metres tall, with 30 floors to house 34 state and 27 federal courtrooms, and was built in 1976, with the NSW Government and Commonwealth Government sharing the costs of construction. It was designed by Peter Johnson of the prominent architectural firm, McConnell Smith & Johnson, with an emphasis on making courts more 'humane' and accessible in their design.

History

The first proposal for a Law Courts Building in Sydney was made in 1938, with a building planned that was to be long, wide, and with three towers, the tallest being . This would have involved demolishing the

Parliament House Parliament House may refer to: Australia * Parliament House, Canberra, Parliament of Australia * Parliament House, Adelaide, Parliament of South Australia * Parliament House, Brisbane, Parliament of Queensland * Parliament House, Darwin, Parliame ...

, the Sydney Hospital, as well as the Sydney Mint. The courts commenced operation from 17 January 1977 and the Law Courts Building was officially opened by the

Premier of New South Wales The premier of New South Wales is the head of government in the state of New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_ ...

, Neville Wran, on 1 February 1977.

References

{{coord, -33.8690, 151.2115, type:landmark_region:AU-NSW, display=title Government buildings completed in 1977 1977 establishments in Australia Buildings and structures in Sydney Brutalist architecture in Australia Courthouses in Sydney Supreme Court of New South Wales High Court of Australia Federal Court of Australia Government buildings in Sydney