ANTWERP
Palace of Justice (Justitiepaleis)
Sent by Koen from Antwerp, Belgium.
The Palace of Justice of Antwerp (Dutch: Justitiepaleis Antwerpen), commonly known as the Antwerp Law Courts (Dutch: Gerechtsgebouw Antwerpen), De Frietzakken, and the Butterfly Palace (Dutch: Vlinderpaleis), is a courthouse in Antwerp, Belgium. The building was erected on the site of the former Antwerp-South railway station, over the Bolivar Tunnel (Dutch: Bolivartunnel), and it houses eight district civil and criminal courts. It was inaugurated on 28 March 2006 by King Albert II, Minister of Justice Laurette Onkelinx, Minister of Finance Didier Reynders, governor Camille Paulus and mayor Patrick Janssens. The building was designed by the Richard Rogers Partnership, VK Studio and Arup.
The judicial services for Antwerp were spread over 14 locations within the city. This made it difficult for the public to find their way around the different services and a central location was sought that would be more efficient. In the 1980s, the Belgian government's Régie des Bâtiments (English: Buildings Agency) considered expanding the existing law court, the Gerechtshof Britselei (English: British Avenue Law Courts), on the Britselei. However, this was discounted due to the residential nature of the area around the law courts (read more).
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