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COURT OF APPEAL
455-469 LONSDALE STREET MELBOURNE, MELBOURNE CITY
COURT OF APPEAL
455-469 LONSDALE STREET MELBOURNE, MELBOURNE CITY
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Victorian Heritage Register
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Statement of Significance
What is significant?
The Court of Appeal, formerly the Supreme Court Annexe and the Crown Law Offices, was built in 1892-93 by the Public Works Department. It was designed by S E Bindley, the architect responsible for the Public Works Department central Melbourne area. The contractors were Swanson Brothers. The three storey plus basement brick structure is faced on the front and side elevations with Stawell stone. The floors are timber and the roof is clad in slate. The main facade is symmetrically arranged with three projecting bays, rising three storeys through a traditional arrangement of base, piano nobile and attic storey. The choice of the restrained Doric order of architecture lends some solemnity to the building. The interior includes a centrally placed octagonal hall which rises through all floors and is surmounted by a cupola and lantern light. Beneath the cupola is a circular gallery with cast iron balustrades. The building was renovated and restored in 1977 and was made an annexe to the Supreme Court to ease an accommodation crisis. The old library was removed and only the octagonal hall and staircase remain intact. A bridge connects the building with the Law Courts.
How is it significant?
The Court of Appeal is of architectural and historical significance to the State of Victoria.
Why is it significant?
The Court of Appeal is architecturally significant as one of Melbourne's exceptional public buildings and it forms a close relationship with the neighbouring Law Courts. It is a fine example of the Public Works Department's work during the late Victorian period. The form and composition are typical of the principal public buildings erected in Victoria at that time, but the stone facades and elaborate roof gable motif are unusual and give the building extra quality and significance. The interior hall is notable for its fine quality finishes and cast iron balustrading.
The Court of Appeal is historically significant as the home of the Crown Law Department and Attorney-General from 1893 to 1963. The department was headed by a succession of prominent lawyers and politicians. The building was also the home of the Licence Reduction Board from 1906. Since 1977 the building has been an annexe to the Supreme Court and continues to play an active role in the State's judicial system.
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COURT OF APPEAL - History
History of Place:
The Crown Law Department was created in 1851 upon the separation of Victoria from New South Wales. In 1851 a dual system of administration was established with the appointment of an Attoney-General and a Solicitor-General. Between 1861 and 1891 a third Minister, the Minister for Justice, also assisted the administration of the Law Department. In 1951 the passing of the Solicitor-General Act provided for the appointment of a Solicitor-General who was not a Minister of the Crown. Since then the Department has been administered solely by the Attorney-General.
From 1906 the Law Offices were also the home of the Licences Reduction Board, instituted to reduce the number of liquor licences in the State, and to reduce the number of hotels to a statutory number.
(K Gray, Allom Lovell, 1997?)COURT OF APPEAL - Permit Exemptions
General Exemptions:General exemptions apply to all places and objects included in the Victorian Heritage Register (VHR). General exemptions have been designed to allow everyday activities, maintenance and changes to your property, which don’t harm its cultural heritage significance, to proceed without the need to obtain approvals under the Heritage Act 2017.Places of worship: In some circumstances, you can alter a place of worship to accommodate religious practices without a permit, but you must notify the Executive Director of Heritage Victoria before you start the works or activities at least 20 business days before the works or activities are to commence.Subdivision/consolidation: Permit exemptions exist for some subdivisions and consolidations. If the subdivision or consolidation is in accordance with a planning permit granted under Part 4 of the Planning and Environment Act 1987 and the application for the planning permit was referred to the Executive Director of Heritage Victoria as a determining referral authority, a permit is not required.Specific exemptions may also apply to your registered place or object. If applicable, these are listed below. Specific exemptions are tailored to the conservation and management needs of an individual registered place or object and set out works and activities that are exempt from the requirements of a permit. Specific exemptions prevail if they conflict with general exemptions. Find out more about heritage permit exemptions here.
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