[1][2] However, as the number of court cases in Birmingham grew, it became necessary to commission a more modern courthouse for criminal matters.

[3] The new building was designed by Property Services Agency, built in red brick with terracotta dressings at a cost of £8.9 million,[4] and was completed in 1987.

[5] The design involved an asymmetrical main frontage facing onto Dalton Street.

The central section, which was projected forward, featured a full-height glass atrium to the right of centre.

[6] A sculpture by Vincent Woropay carved in black Indian granite and depicting a series of busts of the engineer, James Watt, in the style of Egyptian obelisks and Native American totem poles and known as the "Wattilisk" was unveiled outside the building shortly after it opened.