The structure, which was the meeting place of Banffshire County Council and was also used as a courthouse, is a Category B listed building.

[1] Originally, court hearings in Banffshire were held in a tolbooth which was built on the west side of Low Street, on the corner with Strait Path, in the early 16th century.

[3] In the mid-19th century it became necessary to commission a dedicated courthouse: the site the sheriff selected was occupied by a private house known as "Little Fillicap",[4] which had been the home of Katharine Innes, Lady Gight, who was periodically visited there by her grandson, George Gordon Byron, who later became Lord Byron.

The central section of three bays, which was slightly projected forward, featured a three-bay single-storey portico formed by four pairs of Corinthian order columns supporting an entablature surmounted by a balustrade.

[1] The county council initially established its offices at 8 Low Street, opposite the sheriff court.