“Man Had His Name On His License Plate For 25 Years But Now People Are Saying It’s Offensive”

A McGill University professor, Carrie Rentschler, argued that a personalized license plate displaying Lorne Grabher’s family name.

Following this assessment, the Registrar of Motor Vehicles revoked Grabher’s license plate in 2016. Since then, Grabher has been in a legal fight to restore his family plate.

In a recent decision, the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia awarded Grabher $750 to cover costs he had previously paid in court. The reimbursement matched what he had paid to the Crown during a prior legal dispute over an affidavit.

In his decision, Justice Pierre Muise noted that the award was intended to “do justice between the parties.”

Grabher’s lawyer, Jay Cameron, worked to disprove the Crown’s claim that the plate was linked to derogatory connotations. He argued that the report did not state that “GRABHER” was a name but that it was misinterpreted.

Cameron emphasized, “There is zero evidence in this case that refers to any negative connotation, with the exception of this report.”

Meanwhile, Crown lawyer Alison Campbell defended Rentschler’s report, explaining that it was an academic examination of how gender violence is reflected and reinforced in society.

For Grabher, the plate held deep sentimental value, as it was a tribute to his late father, reflecting their Austrian-German heritage.