The Balclutha District Court will be formally closed next month.
Minister of Courts Chester Borrows announced changes in December to close the Balclutha District Court and transfer its services to Dunedin.
Balclutha District Court has been held in Gore and, more recently, Dunedin after the ministry closed the courthouse in November 2011, citing concerns about earthquake risks.
Each Balclutha court sitting in Gore cost the ministry more than $1000 in travel costs for a Dunedin lawyer and two Clutha lawyers.
A spokesman for Mr Borrows this week told the Otago Daily Times the removal of equipment from the courthouse was already under way, and the registry would be formally closed in the middle of next month. The Ministry of Justice would gazette ''revocation of appointment'' in mid-February. Gazetting is the process of publishing notices, required under law, in the New Zealand Gazette, the country's official Government newspaper.
The ministry will transfer the Balclutha property to Land Information New Zealand (Linz), which will consult with Ngai Tahu as to whether it wants to exercise its right of first refusal under the Ngai Tahu Claims Settlement Act (1988). Once Ngai Tahu has formally responded to this request, Linz will arrange for the ''disposal of the site'', either to Ngai Tahu or on the open market.
In the meantime, the ministry would continue to maintain the grounds and retain responsibility for building maintenance, the spokesman said.
Mr Borrows said engineers estimated it would cost more than $600,000 to strengthen the Balclutha courthouse.
Last September, the Balclutha District Court sitting in Gore was told by Judge Stephen Coyle it was the court's final sitting for the foreseeable future.
''The effect on the Balclutha community has been significant,'' Judge Coyle said.
Dunedin judges had been ''keen to ensure'' there would be a nominated Balclutha court day in Dunedin, but the proposal did not ''find favour'' with the Ministry of Justice.
The September sitting in Gore was the final list day for Balclutha, but its cases will continue to be heard in Dunedin, filed under the Balclutha District Court until revocation is gazetted. Balclutha cases will then be fully merged into the Dunedin District Court.
