This complex features 160 courtrooms—with accompanying administrative and governmental services—distributed between two 14-story buildings.
Majestic public steps draw visitors to the glass-walled entries, intricately designed with Arabic-derived geometric patterns. The walls afford excellent views, filter harsh sunlight and express the openness and transparency of the business conducted inside.
Both Al-Farwaniya and Al-Jahra feature large public halls, which are the symbolic and functional focus of the courthouses. These grand atriums immediately establish clear, intuitive wayfinding. The large administrative departments of these buildings, those with the highest degree of public contact, are the first and simplest to access. Like most modern courthouses, it was imperative to have the three types of circulation systems: public, private, and secure.
As a testament to the success of the design, this complex now serves as a prototype for all new Kuwaiti courthouses.
