The Royal Courts of Justice, also known as the Law Courts, is situated on Fleet Street, London and houses the High Court and Court of Appeal of England and Wales. Now one of the largest courts in Europe, it was designed by George Edmund Street and opened by Queen Victoria in 1882.
Law suit for libel opened on 25 November 1878 at London’s Courts of Justice, with Whistler as litigant, claiming damages of £1000 from Ruskin. The verdict was awarded to Whistler after a trial lasting eight hours (the jury deliberated for another two), but as importantly, Whistler was awarded only one farthing in damages and no costs. Image: Self-Portrait of James McNeill Whistler, Arrangement in Gray: Portrait of the Painter, c. 1872 (Detroit, Michigan, Detroit Institute of Arts). This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.