The proposal is still pending approval from the Ministry of Justice, but the District Court's general manager Tony Fisher said while sittings of the Balclutha District Court in Gore had been working well, court users had told the ministry it was easier for them to travel to Dunedin than Gore.
''We are consulting with stake-holders now about switching sittings to Dunedin and that consultation is ongoing.
''If stakeholders agree - and the early indications are that there is universal support - we've indicated we'd look to be holding sittings of the Balclutha District Court in Dunedin by October.''
The Otago Daily Times understands consultation is due to close today.
Lawyer Tina Williams believed the transferral of Balclutha District Court sittings to Dunedin was ''inevitable''.
''It would be great to have some transparency as to the long-term plans. I don't believe ... anyone is being fooled that Balclutha will have a hearing centre.''
Ms Williams said the Clutha district had been ''left in the lurch'' when it came to court and registry services.
''Whether travel is required to Gore or Dunedin for the large number of the clients, the issue remains the same. There will be an ongoing problem with transport for South Otago residents. Having no licence, no public transport, or limited finance is not overcome by a change in destination.''
Since the Balclutha courthouse's closure in November 2011, criminal court hearings have been held in Gore.
At the end of February, the Balclutha registry office was closed and the town lost its two registrars. The move was part of the ministry's decision to make nine courts, including Balclutha and Oamaru, hearing-only centres.
Last November, Ms Williams opened a second office in Gore as she was spending more and more time in the town.
Clutha Mayor Bryan Cadogan said while the move to Dunedin might be the ''lesser of two evils'', it was frustrating the consultation process did not include the community.
''Once again our needs and concerns have been overlooked. This has been a long process that we have never been a party to and time has shown us that the loss of court services has proved detrimental to the district.''
He said it was imperative to maintain the Balclutha District Court identity and keep its list and fixture dates separate from the Dunedin District Court.
Lawyer Carmen Jillett said she had not been consulted by the ministry, and had heard about the move from the Otago Law Society.
''We were promised a hearing court. Where is it?''
Ms Jillett said smaller communities required the same access to justice as larger ones. Clutha was further disadvantaged by the withdrawal of registry services.
She said lawyers and the public were not informed when Dun-edin-based registrars were sitting in Balclutha until a sign was placed outside the registry office. Balclutha lawyer Noel O'Malley said he was asked about the move to Dunedin in an email from the ministry.
''If we can't have court in Balclutha which is the ideal, then I think Dunedin is more appropriate than Gore.''
Lawyer Mark Deacon, South Otago's only youth advocate, withdrew from Youth Court earlier this month as it was no longer viable with so many cases shifted to Dunedin.
