Judge Ingvar Paulsson watched from the window as the woman stood outside the court with a container filled with liquid.
“She had been here to collect the verdict in her asylum case. She had been turned down,” Paulsson told news agency TT.
The dramatic situation came to a sudden end when the woman collapsed and police were able to intervene to ensure she was taken to hospital.
Police had been unable to communicate with the woman and were awaiting an interpreter when she collapsed. No details have been released regarding the woman’s nationality.