I
In architecture, an outdoor room surrounded by buildings or walls.
Courts have existed in all civilizations from the earliest recorded times. The small garden court ( atrium ) of a Roman house was the center of domestic activity. In medieval Europe the court was a feature of all major residential buildings, as the cloister of a monastery, ward of a castle , or quadrangle of a college. A courtyard is often a utilitarian court (as for stables).
II
Official assembly with judicial authority to hear and determine disputes in particular cases.
In early judicial tribunals, judges sat in enclosures (courts in an architectural sense), and lawyers and the general public remained outside a bar (hence the term bar in legal contexts). Modern British courts are divided into those trying criminal cases and those trying civil cases; a second distinction is made between inferior courts, or courts of first instance, and superior courts, or courts of appeal. In the U.S. each state has its own system of courts, usually consisting of a superior (appellate) court, trial courts of general jurisdiction, and specialized courts (e.g., probate courts). The U.S. also has a system of federal courts, established to adjudicate distinctively national questions and cases not appropriately tried in state courts. At the apex of the national system is the Supreme Court of the United States . The secondary level consists of the United States Courts of Appeals . United States District Court s form the tertiary level. Crimes committed by military figures may be tried in a court-martial . In the past, ecclesiastical courts had broad jurisdiction. See also judiciary .
III
[c mediumvioletred] (as used in expressions)
Appomattox Court House
Common Pleas Court of
Court Margaret Smith
court martial
European Court of Justice
High Commission Court of
High Court of Admiralty
Inns of Court
International Court of Justice
World Court
International Criminal Court
{{link=juvenile court">juvenile court
magistrates' court
prerogative court
Supreme Court of the United States
Tennis Court Oath
United States District Court
United States Courts of Appeals