The largest of David Chipperfield Architects’ projects currently under construction, the new law courts complex of Barcelona breaks down the 330,000 m2 programme into eight freestanding buildings, linked by a continuous atrium space. The project includes the design of all public areas, courtrooms, and offices.

Previously, the various legal departments of the governments of Barcelona and L’Hospitalet were scattered in 17 buildings across the two cities, with functional frustrations for both users and employees. A new conjoined City of Justice will improve efficiency and allow working spaces to adapt and absorb the constant transformation of the judicial body as well as provide reserve space for future growth. The site is at the border of the two cities of Barcelona and L’Hospitalet on a site which was previously a military barracks. It is located adjacent to both Gran Vía, a major access route into the center of Barcelona from the south, and Carrilet, an artery leading to L’Hospitalet. The position provides optimum accessibility to the city and major metropolitan routes on both public and private transport.

The principal proposition of the project breaks down the massive programme into a series of separate but interrelated blocks on a public plaza, giving a spatial composition that attempts to break the rigid and monolithic image of justice. The proposal also attempts to provide equilibrium to the relationships between the different working areas, public areas and landscape. A group of four large judicial buildings are situated around the perimeter of a four-storey high linking concourse building. All of these floors are accessed directly from the concourse building which acts as a filter. The concourse building also gathers people at the start and completion of their judicial visit within a central public room, which overlooks the exterior plaza.

Four other independent buildings comprise a judicial services building for L’Hospitalet, a forensic sciences building, and two commercial buildings with retail facilities at ground floor. A further building is planned to contain both residential and commercial retail activities. All eight buildings are conceived as formally restrained blocks with load bearing coloured concrete ‘cage’ facades. Each building has a different and contrasting, although muted, color tone. The concourse building has a more free form plan with deep exposed concrete slabs and woven mesh screens in front of frameless glazing.