It is located in downtown, Portland, Oregon, the county seat, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Due to concerns over the structural deficiency of the then-century-old building, which was determined to need a costly seismic retrofit, the county board of commissioners decided in 2013 to launch plans to construct a new courthouse in a different location, to replace the existing building.

[5] The old building was sold in 2018 to NBP Capital,[6] which plans to convert it into a mixed-use development after making a seismic retrofit.

[5] The Multnomah County Courthouse was built in two phases between 1909 and 1914 at a total cost of $1.6 million; to make it fire-resistant, it was constructed of concrete-encased steel, with concrete slab floors and walls of terra-cotta brick, covered with plaster.

[4] The last day of operation of the old courthouse was September 29, 2020, and the new building opened to the public on October 5, 2020.