Victims and witnesses in sheriff and jury trials in Skye and Lochaber will face round trips of up to eight hours after it emerged their cases will soon be dealt with in Inverness.
Solemn trials in Fort William and Portree will be transferred to Inverness Sheriff Court by the end of May.
It means anyone from Fort William involved in such trials will spend four hours travelling, those from Portree a minimum of five hours, and for anyone from the Ardnamurchan peninsula about eight hours.
A spokesman for the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) said that the move is subject to “any exceptional cases of particular local interest or where the interests of justice require the local court to be used”.
He said that the plans were first outlined in the Shaping Scotland’s Courts report of 2013, which aims to “improve the consistency and quality of service” locally as a body of new summary sheriffs is established.
The spokesman also stressed that, in 2015-16, a total of five solemn cases were heard in Fort William and that only one was heard in Portree.
Kate Forbes MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, acknowledged this but said: “A round trip from Portree is five-hours minimum, travelling from parts of Lochaber and north Skye will take even longer than this.
“I understand that the proposals are in part designed to ensure a common standard of justice for everyone through the court system, and I firmly believe that access to justice across the Highlands must not become a postcode lottery.”
Ms Forbes also stressed there is a need for travelling domestic abuse courts throughout the Highlands as, for example, limited public transport links means the accused, victim and witnesses could end up travelling on the same bus to Inverness.
Highlands and Islands Green MSP John Finnie stressed that the range of punishments now available to a summary sheriff is more than it once was, which helps reduce the amount of sheriff and jury trials.
He added: “It’s very important that vulnerable witnesses, particularly those concerned with domestic violence and sexual attacks, are afforded the full range of facilities to deliver evidence in ways that don’t make them any more vulnerable. That can be facilitated by use of remote facilities and specific locations.”
The move comes shortly after plans were approved by councillors for a new £23million justice centre in Inverness.
Meetings were held in Fort William and Portree with court officials earlier this month to outline the new programme, procedures and arrangements.
Solemn cases where a plea of guilty has been tendered at a first hearing will continue to be heard locally. The last trial sitting in Fort William is May 29 and, in Portree, April 18.
