The Supreme Court building
(Høyesterett) was designed and built by architect Hans Jacob Sparre in 1903. Initially, the edifice housed the nation’s three levels of courts and was built in a monumental Italian new renaissance style. Behind the facade on Grubbegata, on the ground floor, the City Court had its chambers. The largest room on the first floor, with a grand entrance, was the Court of Appeals. The Supreme Court occupied the second floor, with its elegant overhead lighting and windows. It had its own entrance from Akersgata. Since 1996, the building has been used exclusively by the Supreme Court and was renamed the Supreme Courthouse. It is of high architectural quality, carried through by the specially designed furniture and lamps. It was fully renovated and restored between 1994 and 1996, and in November 2014 it was placed on the national cultural heritage list.
