Court awards costs to couple after FGM convictions declared miscarriage of justice

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

The Court of Appeal has awarded costs to the couple whose convictions for female genital mutilation of their daughter were quashed and later declared a miscarriage of justice. The Director of Public Prosecutions opposed payment of their full costs, but the court found no reason to depart from the usual rule that the successful party receives costs.

In June, the court found on the balance of probabilities that the couple were factually innocent, citing newly discovered facts in expert reports. Their convictions had been quashed in 2021 over serious translation inaccuracies; a 2023 retrial failed to reach a verdict, and the DPP later dropped the charges.