Update on temporary court closures
Thursday 16 February 2012
The Ministry of Justice is continuing to ensure court services remain accessible for communities where courts have been closed recently due to the risk of collapse in a serious earthquake, Acting Deputy Secretary Courts Robert Pigou says.
District Courts in Upper Hutt, Masterton, Feilding, Rangiora, Oamaru and Balclutha were closed late last year after engineering experts warned there was a high risk of partial or full collapse in a significant seismic event. The tower block and surrounding areas of the Dunedin Combined Court were also closed.
“We’ve worked with community groups, local authorities and court users in the affected communities to find ways to continue offering as many court functions locally as possible,” Mr Pigou said.
“This has involved shifting court functions to nearby cities in some cases and I thank Ministry staff and court users for their patience in this regard. The good news now is that we’ve identified alternative venues in some locations and will be offering services locally in those areas over the coming months”.
In Oamaru, registry services will be offered from the local Work and Income office by early next month and court hearings will be operating from the Oamaru Opera House from mid to late March.
“This is a great example of how a community can pull together in tough times to overcome adversity,” Mr Pigou said. “I’d like to thank the Ministry of Social Development and management from the Oamaru Opera House especially for making this possible.”
In Masterton, most hearings are now being heard from the Masterton City Council buildings. Good progress is also being made on finding a longer-term option for housing registry services and court hearings in the Masterton community, Mr Pigou said.
In Balclutha, seismic assessments have been conducted on alternative venues in the community in order to hold family and civil hearings locally and the Ministry is waiting on a report before considering options further. Registry services continue to be offered at the Balclutha registry building next to the District Court, with hearings moved to Gore or Dunedin in the meantime.
All Upper Hutt services continue to be offered from Lower Hutt District Court. Arrangements are being made to set up a clinic on a regular basis where a Justice of the Peace and a court staff member will be available for people needing affidavits sworn, declarations taken and documents certified. Local lawyers will also be able to file urgent documents.
Rangiora District Court cases will continue to be heard in alternative venues in Christchurch. All registry services and hearings for Feilding will continue to be taken care of in Palmerston North for the foreseeable future.
The Ministry is continuing to assess long-term options for court services in the affected communities and is waiting for more information from engineers before the planning of strengthening work can be completed, Mr Pigou said.
Information regarding alternative arrangements for the affected courts is available here (PDF, 74KB)
ENDS
For more information contact Nathan Green, Media Advisor – 022 618 4745
