Louisiana Supreme Court Building
نيو أورلينز
The Louisiana Supreme Court Building is home to the state's highest court, at 400 Royal Street. It opened in 1910 in the Beaux-Arts style and went back to the judges in 2004.
A new courthouse for the city
In the early 1900s, the city's courts were cramped in old buildings. In 1902 the state set up a commission to build a new home for them. Work began in 1908 and the building opened in 1910.
The Beaux-Arts style
It is a four-story building, elegant and symmetrical, in the Beaux-Arts style. Among the small colorful houses of the Quarter, it looks almost like a white castle. It fills the whole block on its own.
A long silence and a great restoration
In 1958 the court moved to a more modern office. The building housed other offices and even a natural science museum. In 1981 it stood empty: the roof leaked and many things were ruined. The court wanted it back for its original purpose, and the restoration ended in 2004. Today the judges work again in the restored rooms.
The laws of Louisiana
Louisiana's laws grew out of the traditions of the European colonial governments. After 1803 they blended with American ones. That is why Louisiana's legal system is different from those of the other states. One room in the building tells this story.
