"Our courts of justice shall always surpass all other structures in durability, firm set on their foundations and built four-square to all the winds that blow, as an outward symbol perhaps of the justice which shall stand firm though the skies fall," he said.

The court building, designed by two prominent British architects, Sir Aston Webb (1849-1930) and E. Ingress Bell (1837-1914), is a magnificent two-storey granite structure that combines Greek, Roman, English and Chinese architectural elements and neo-classical style in an elegant way. Aston and Bell also designed the Victoria Law Courts in the English city of Birmingham (1886) and many other famous buildings.

After the Supreme Court was removed to a modern, functional, multi-storey building at Queensway, Admiralty, in 1984, the building was used to house the Legislative Council, where it remained until the home of the legislature of the special administrative region moved to a new complex at Tamar.

The architecture of the building is rich in messages. It is an icon of Hong Kong's judicial independence, which has been practised for over a century and is preserved under the solemn pledge of "one country, two systems".

The blindfolded Themis standing right above the royal coat of arms is a visual reiteration of the centuries-old ideal of rule of law that even the sovereign must be subject to the law and reason. The administration of justice under the dome has to live up to that spirit.

Over the years, the architecture has helped to shape public understanding and expectations of the legal system. Fairness and impartiality, as symbolised by Themis, are the legal values that people treasure most.

With the reoccupation by the Court of Final Appeal, the building will continue to convey the meaning of rule of law across time through its language of architecture, the practice of judicial independence, and the upholding of justice and equality.