Courthouse Sneek

The Sneek District Court was a court in the Netherlands from 1838 to 1877. Sneek was the third district in the province of Friesland. Appeals against the court's decisions could be lodged with the provincial court in Leeuwarden.

Sneek was divided into four cantons: Sneek, Bolsward, Hindeloopen and Lemmer. After the court was dissolved in 1877, Sneek, Bolsward and Hindeloopen were added in their entirety to the district of Leeuwarden, while Lemmer was divided between Leeuwarden and Heerenveen.

The court in Sneek received its own building in 1839, designed by P.J. Rollema. The capable architect Pieter Jentjes Rollema, who was the city architect of Sneek from 1826 to 1845, designed the courthouse in 1839, which came in place of the lodge De Witte Arend.The building is of monumental allure, not least because of the risen (protruding) central section of natural stone. Attached to this are beautifully detailed volutes. In gilded letters above the entrance are words of the famous Roman jurist Ulpianus, who lived in the second century of our era: IUS SUUM CUIQUE (every man his right).

After the dissolution of the court, the building remained in use, until 2013, by the Sneek district court.

With the departure of the Sneek district court to Leeuwarden, the former courthouse became vacant. The imposing, monumental building, located on the Marktstraat now forms a unique location for a successful catering establishment.