The Law Courts

Mid-century brutalist buildings

Designed by noted architect Arthur Erickson in 1973 for the province’s Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, this stunning concrete and glass brutalist monument was originally designed as a 50-story high-rise until a change in provincial government rejected that plan.

Erickson re-conceived the building as a 7-story horizontal high-rise; part of the ground-breaking Robson Square complex spanning 3 city blocks in downtown Vancouver which includes The Law Courts to the south, Robson Square at its core (currently home to a University of BC satelite campus) and the Vancouver Art Gallery to the north.

The building’s hard concrete edges are softened by incorporating Cornelia Oberlander‘s beautiful landscaping into its layout – a new concept at the time – and is open to all via a 3-block long accessible rooftop.

The complex opened in 1979 and has received numerous architectural awards over the years.