Johnson subsequently resigned from the Public Works Department and joined Smith to form a successful and highly influential partnership.

The façade itself is faced with Tasmanian freestone and features an elaborate double arcade of Ionic and Composite columns along the William Street boundary.

A covered carriageway leads from Lonsdale Street to the central courtyard, in which sits the Supreme Court Library.

The design of the library is appropriate to the Renaissance Palazzo style with its three floors forming a rusticated base, piano nobile, and attic storey.

The interior of the building features elaborate moulded plasterwork on the walls and ceilings, as well as robust detailing of the benches, Judges' canopies, and cedar panelling.