He made the comments after last Monday's council meeting when an urgent report and stakeholder meeting were called on a decision to move two of Penrith's three district courts to Parramatta.

``The courts' relocation and resultant need for people to travel to attend court matters will significantly adversely impact police, court staff, crime victims and witnesses, local scientific experts and shopkeepers,'' Cr Aitken said.

The Chief Judge of the District Court, Justice Reginald Blanch, has decided to move some of the cases from Penrith from July 1 next year.

In a letter to Penrith Council, Attorney-General John Hatzistergos said the court would continue to sit and hear trials, appeals and sentences in district court matters originating from the police local area commands of Penrith, the Blue Mountains and Hawkesbury. He said matters from Blacktown, Mount Druitt, Quakers Hill and St Marys would go to Parramatta. Longer trials, which would have previously been transferred to the city, will go to Parramatta, he said.

A district court spokeswoman said a long trial was considered to be one with a time estimate of more than two weeks.

Mr Hatzistergos wrote in the letter that ``the majority of Penrith District Court's service will remain unaltered under the new arrangement''.

He also said that ``contrary to what has been reported, Penrith police will not be affected and domestic violence cases will continue to be heard at Penrith''.

But practitioners disagree.

Stewart Cole, solicitor at Burston, Cole and Mulock, said in his experience, most trials were five to six days long. He said the fact remained that two judges and two courts were being taken away from Penrith.

``They can't dress that up in any way that's acceptable,'' he said. ``I regard this as the blunt end of the wedge.''

He feared that eventually the district court would go from Penrith altogether.