The Court of Appeal has upheld awards of €95,000 each to brothers Marco and Luca Gambucci after a jury found they had been maliciously prosecuted following their detention in Dublin in 2008.
The judgment, delivered on 29 October 2025, dismissed appeals by Daniel Barry, Jonathan Petrie, the Commissioner of An Garda Síochána, Ireland and the Attorney General.
The civil actions arose from events on 18 May 2008. The brothers alleged they were removed from a Luas tram at St Stephen’s Green, detained at Pearse Street Garda Station and accused of attempted theft. They also alleged assault, but the jury later rejected those assault claims.
At the civil trial, evidence was given that the following day Garda officers met the brothers and discussed the criminal charges. Marco Gambucci and a work colleague said a proposal was made that the charges would not proceed if the brothers did not seek legal advice. That account was disputed by the Garda defendants.
The attempted theft charge was listed in the District Court on 16 June 2008. The court was told that a resisting arrest charge was instead intended. The matter was adjourned, but the charges were ultimately struck out after the Garda defendants did not appear on the later date.
A High Court jury subsequently found that the Garda defendants did not honestly believe in the case being made against the brothers and that the prosecution had been instituted or maintained for the improper purpose of discouraging them from seeking legal redress. It awarded each brother €95,000.
The Court of Appeal rejected challenges to the trial judge’s directions, handling of witnesses and legal rulings. It also refused to reduce the damages, stressing the serious implications of a malicious prosecution for reputation and employment.
The appeals were dismissed. The court’s provisional view was that the Gambucci brothers were also entitled to their appeal costs, subject to further submissions.