Dispute over GRABHER licence plate headed to court for hearing on Feb. 1

HALIFAX – A Nova Scotia man who made international headlines when the provincial government decided his personalized licence plate was offensive to women will have his day in court early next year.

The letters on the plate read GRABHER, which is Lorne Grabher’s last name.

Following up on one complaint, the province’s Registry of Motor Vehicles revoked his personalized Nova Scotia plate, saying it was a “socially unacceptable slogan.”

Grabher wants his name reinstated on the plate, and his lawyers from the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms intend to argue the removal violates the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

At a hearing Tuesday in Nova Scotia Supreme Court, it was agreed that Grabher’s application to overturn the decision will be heard on Feb. 1, 2018.

The 69-year-old has argued he shouldn’t face discrimination just because his name is unusual, adding that his family had used the plate for 27 years.

Grabher has said his last name is a point of pride for his family and its Austrian-German heritage.