State Budget cannot ignore dire state of courts
1 June 2026
The State Budget is a reflection of the Government’s priorities for the State.
Judging by recent budgets, South Australia’s justice system ranks low on the priority list.
This is disappointing, given the justice system is an essential pillar of a functioning democracy, the access to justice gap is widening, investment in prisons dwarfs investment in measures to keep people out of prison, and our court buildings are in a sorry state.
The Law Society has urged the Government to allocate much-needed funds to the court system in this Thursday’s State Budget. The lack of investment in this State’s deteriorating court buildings is a blight on this State that can no longer be ignored.
The Sir Samuel Way Building in Victoria Square, home to our busiest Court, the District Court, is in bad condition.
The Supreme Court does not have the facilities or room to hold criminal trials. All Supreme Court criminal trials must be held in the Sir Samuel Way Building. There are more pending trials needing courtrooms than are available, meaning determination of matters gets delayed by months or years, adding further stress to the backlogs in the criminal justice system that already extend beyond two years, and resulting in more time and cost associated with prisoners on remand. Not to mention the accompanying delay in justice itself.
Some courtrooms have no wheelchair access, there are no suitable, trauma-informed rooms for vulnerable witnesses, and the “bricks and mortar” are in an increasing state of disrepair.
The Youth Court is simply not up to modern standards. It is unwelcoming and intimidating for young defendants and witnesses. The Youth Court has limited areas to keep children separate from adults, and has holding cells that, according to a recent Youth Training Centre Visitor report, are “harmful to children and young people and fall below acceptable minimum standards of safety, dignity and care.”
The recent Royal Commission into Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence also identified the serious lack of safe spaces for victims and other vulnerable court users.
The fact is that the State’s court facilities, especially in the central precinct, are archaic, at risk of structural failure, and barely fit for purpose.
In 2013, the Labor Government recognised this fact when it announced a $500 million revamp of the metropolitan courts precinct and AGD headquarters. Unfortunately, this proposal was shelved in 2015.
Since then, Governments have invested minimally in upgrading the courts, the most significant outlay being $31 million last decade for work to the Supreme Court and Sir Samuel Way buildings.
While those upgrades were welcome, the works were designed to meet accommodation requirements for up to five years. It is now 2026, and the courts are well short of being able to meet demand.
Court buildings are not recreational facilities or tourist attractions. They are not “nice to haves” – they are essential pieces of civil infrastructure. These are the places in which justice is administered, where laws are tested, where people exercise their fundamental rights. They should be afforded appropriate priority.
In the Law Society’s estimation, a sum of $200 million would go a long way toward addressing the most critical issues in the courts. It would welcome a thorough evaluation of the justice system's future needs and a commitment to future-proofing the courts.
In 2023 the Law Society conducted a survey of the legal profession about the State’s court facilities. The feedback about the dilapidated, inaccessible, cramped, tired facilities was sobering but not surprising reading.
While successive budgets have taught us not to get our hopes up, we hold out hope that the Government finally acknowledges the dire need for a justice infrastructure that is fit for purpose and can serve the needs of the community.
David Colovic
President
Law Society of South Australia