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Manchester civil court opens for business

24/10/2007

Manchester Civil Justice Centre, the largest court building to be constructed in England in more than a century, has finally opened its doors.

The 14-floor building in Spinningfields is designed to hear civil cases, such as major commercial, business and consumer disputes, as well as family law and family care cases.

An eco-friendly building, it has 47 court or hearing rooms, six suites for vulnerable witnesses and 76 consultation rooms and was designed by Australian architects Denton Corker Marshall following an international design competition.

The building is distinctive in both shape and colour. In some respects, it looks like a filing cabinet with some of the draws pulled out and features aqua-marine and yellow patches of colour against its predominantly grey background.

Sir Ron De Witt, Her Majesty's Court Service chief executive, said: "The Manchester Civil Justice Centre is a new flagship court for the north-west.

"It is a court centre that we can be rightly proud of; the building and its facilities for court users are among the best in the world."

The last time a court the size of the Manchester Civil Justice Centre was built was at the end of the 19th century when the Law Courts in London's Strand were erected.