noun
Refers to a court of law as an institution or the building where trials are held.
裁判所で証言した。
I testified in court.
あの建物は裁判所です。
That building is the courthouse.
法廷 refers specifically to the courtroom itself, while 裁判所 can mean the court as an institution or the building.
Compound of 裁判 (trial, judgment) and 所 (place). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the spelling is conventionally associated with a place where trials are held.