Law Courts Building, Sydney

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Picture of the building.

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,[1] as well as parts of the Federal Court of Australia and the High Court of Australia.[2]

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.[3] 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.[4]

History[]

A memorial plaque to the proposed Law Courts complex in front of Parliament House.

The first proposal for a Law Courts Building in Sydney was made in 1938, with a building planned that was to be 900 feet (270 m) long, 170 feet (52 m) wide, and with three towers, the tallest being 220 feet (67 m).[5] This would have involved demolishing the Parliament House, the Sydney Hospital, as well as the Sydney Mint.[6]

The courts commenced operation from 17 January 1977 and the Law Courts Building was officially opened by the Premier of New South Wales, Neville Wran, on 1 February 1977.[4][7]


References[]

  1. ^ "Law Courts building". www.supremecourt.justice.nsw.gov.au. 2015-12-05. Retrieved 2020-08-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. ^ "Home". Lawcourts. Retrieved 2020-08-12.
  3. ^ "Law Courts Building, Sydney | 108087 | EMPORIS". www.emporis.com. Retrieved 2020-08-12.
  4. ^ a b "'Humane' Courtrooms Opened by Premier". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2 February 1977. p. 2.
  5. ^ "NEW LAW COURTS". Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954). 1938-08-31. p. 18. Retrieved 2020-08-12.
  6. ^ "SUGGESTED REPLANNING OF MACQUARIE-STREET". Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954). 1935-09-17. p. 10. Retrieved 2020-08-12.
  7. ^ "Supreme Court of New South Wales - Change of Address". The Sydney Morning Herald. 15 January 1977. p. 21.

Coordinates: 33°52′08″S 151°12′41″E / 33.8690°S 151.2115°E / -33.8690; 151.2115

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