Dolce & Gabbana Tax Evasion Case Officially Acquitted
After designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana spent almost eight years battling in Italian courts to protect their brand and their honesty — Italian fashion house Dolce & Gabbana was officially cleared of all tax evasion charges this week.
“Finally,” Dolce’s lawyer, Massimo Dinoia, told WWD about the end of the lengthy court battle. He added that the tax evasion issue “is definitely closed with an unquestionable verdict that does not admit uncertainties: there is no case to answer.”
The official closure was a result of Dolce’s cousin, Alfonso Dolce, being exonerated of any claims against him. Back in October 2014, Italy’s highest court ruled that the fashion house was not guilty of tax evasion.
“We have always been honest and we are extremely proud of this recognition by the Italian Court of Justice. Viva l’Italia,” Dolce and Gabbana announced in an official statement following the court ruling.
In April 2014, an appeals court found Dolce & Gabbana’s design duo, as well as four others, guilty and fined the fashion house the equivalent of about $500 dollars. They adamantly denied the claims of criminality and said if forced to pay the fine, they would have to close their global fashion franchise.
In related news, Karl Lagerfeld — the iconic 80-year-old fashion designer behind Chanel, Fendi and his namesake brand — is reportedly having his taxes investigated by French authorities over claims of using offshore tax havens to avoid paying a significant sum of euros to the French government.
Caroline Lebar, a spokeswoman for the designer, told The New York Times earlier this month that Lagerfeld “had no wish to evade the law,” and that he had trusted his financial advisers.
