A family who claimed to have been harassed and intimidated by gardaí has received an apology from the State.

The apology was made before the High Court to members of the Topolnicki family from Ashmount, Clonsilla in Dublin 15.

Mr Justice Paul Gilligan heard the State was offering an unconditional apology and accepted gardaí had made a mistake by calling to the wrong address.

The family, originally from Poland, launched legal proceedings after gardaí called to their home on eight different occasions over a three-year period.

They said they are law abiding citizens and have no criminal convictions, do not associate with criminals, and have never been involved with the police in any jurisdiction.

They sought various orders, including restraining gardaí from entering or attending their Clonsilla home save for under the authority of a valid warrant issued by a court of law.

They also sought an order restraining gardaí from watching, besetting, harassing or intimidating any member of the family including brothers Marek and Patryk Topolnicki and their wives Malgorzata and Kinga.

The family had sued the Garda Commissioner, the Minister for Justice, Ireland and the Attorney General.

The family claimed gardaí first called to the house sometime in 2014 and said they were looking for a person who may have previously resided at there and were told that person did not live there.

In March 2016, up to 12 officers arrived at the house and banged on doors and windows.

Marek Topolnicki said when he opened the door he was pushed inside and six to eight gardaí forcibly entered and roamed around the house.

This upset and traumatised the family, who said they were given no information by gardaí.

He said they did not have a warrant and before leaving the house a member of the garda party gave him a document to sign which Mr Topolnicki was told was a confirmation that no damage had occurred during the search.

Following that incident the family said their home was watched by gardaí who also called to their door on a number of other occasions.

On another occasion, the family claimed gardaí called to their home at 2am and remained outside for a period with the lights of their vehicle on and the engine running.

The family are originally from Krakow in Poland and have been living and working in Ireland for several years.

Mr Justice Gilligan struck out the action and awarded costs to the family.