The Former Fanling Magistracy was constructed in 1960 and was the first Magistracy set up in the New Territories, which opened in 1961 to serve the District. Structures were erected on the adjacent site in 1983 to provide two additional courtrooms, court support offices and an office for Duty Lawyers. The Former Fanling Magistracy was closed and has been left vacant since the completion of the new Fanling Law Courts Building in 2002. The site comprises of six structures, namely the main building, the two government staff quarter buildings, a store, an annex court building and a court secretariat office.
The main building of the Former Fanling Magistracy is one of the representative examples of civic architecture of the period. The double canopied projecting bay with storeys high vertical windows dominates the front facade and gives a simplified version of the neo-classical architecture. The side facades also feature neo-classical motif, corbel and moulded architraved doorways. The internal atrium lit by a central light well houses a grand staircase with ornamental ironwork balustrades leading to upper floors courtrooms. The court was built with more economical finishing materials of the era, such as terrazzo tiles, mosaic tiles, artificial granite tiles and stucco painting.