Courthouse
A courthouse (sometimes spelled court house) is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In some other English speaking countries buildings which house courts are simply called "courts".
United States
In most counties in the United States, the local trial courts conduct their business in a centrally located courthouse which may also house county governmental offices. The courthouse is usually located in the county seat, although large metropolitan counties may have satellite or annex offices for their courts.
In some cases this building may be renamed in some way or its function divided as between a judicial building and administrative office building. Many judges also officiate at civil marriage ceremonies in their courthouse chambers. In addition to judicial duties, in some cases a courthouse is also the main administrative office for the county government. An example of this is in Kentucky, where the chief executive of a county is known as a Judge-Executive.nice
Each United States district court also has a federally owned building where its courtrooms, chambers and clerk's offices are located. Many federal judicial districts are further divided into divisions, which may also have their own courthouses, although sometimes the smaller divisional court facilities are located in buildings that also house other agencies or offices of the United States government. There is even a US District Court in Yosemite National Park.
The courthouse is part of the iconography of American life and is often shown in cinema. They range from small-town rural buildings with a few rooms to huge metropolitan courthouses that take up large plots of land. The style of American architecture used varies, with common styles including federal, Greek Revival, neoclassicist, and modern.
Because Americans have a strong tradition of firearm ownership, and dissatisfied litigants sometimes resort to violence,[1] courthouses in American cities often have security checkpoints where all incoming persons are searched for weapons. After the Oklahoma City bombing, the federal government proceeded to heavily fortify all large federal buildings, including many urban courthouses.
Some courthouses in areas with high levels of violent crime have redundant layers of security. For example, when the California Supreme Court hears oral arguments at its branch courtroom in Los Angeles, visitors must pass through one security checkpoint to enter the building, and another to enter the courtroom.
Canada
In Canada each municipality constructs its own courthouse, or several in the case of large cities. In smaller communities the court is in the same building as the city hall and other municipal offices. In the past many courthouses also included the local prison.
References
- ^ See, e.g., Zelig v. County of Los Angeles, 27 Cal. 4th 1112, 1119 (2002) (upholding discretionary immunity of county and its sheriff’s department for fatal shooting of wife by husband during family court proceedings in courthouse with no metal detectors).
See also
