The case of a Nova Scotia citizen who was denied use of his license plate due to its potentially “offensive” nature will be heard before the provincial Court of Appeal today.
Lorne Grabher is the owner of a license plate featuring his family name, “GRABHER.” In 2016, the Nova Scotia Registrar of Motor Vehicles received a complaint regarding the plate, which culminated in Registrar Janice Harland sending Grabher a notice of cancellation. The notice explained that Grabher’s surname could be “misinterpreted as a socially unacceptable slogan.”
It was after receiving the notice that Grabher made a number of formal requests for the Registrar to reconsider her decision. He also argued that he has used the license plate for 27 years without incident. However, he was told that the cancellation decision was final.
The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) later stepped in to champion Grabher, asking the Registrar to reinstate the license plate. JCCF also argued that the decision to cancel the license plate was discriminatory,” “arbitrary,” and “unreasonable,” and a violation of free expression under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
When the case first went to lower court, it was argued that the Registrar has compiled an extensive list of words that were arbitrarily banned for use in the Personalized Plate Program. Words such as “SAFE,” “INFUSE,” “GOLD,” “NONE,” “FENCE,” “ODD,” “RTRRACE,” “ABBOT,” “DRDAVE,” and “SAMPLE” were among the words prohibited by the Registrar.
Grabher also maintained that certain government place names could also be misconstrued as offensive, but nevertheless still appear on official maps and signs across Canada. Those names include “Swastika, ON,” “Dildo, NFLD,” “Blow Me Down Provincial Park, NFLD,” “Red Indian Lake, NFLD,” and “Crotch Lake, ON”. It was also pointed out that around the same time Grabher’s plate was revoked, the City of Halifax was running an ad about its utilities with the phrases “Proud of your dingle” and “Powerful Sh*t.”
However, Grabher’s court case was dismissed on January 31, 2020. Justice Darlene Jamieson ruled that expression on personalized plates is not protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, adding that the plate could be interpreted as promoting sexualized violence.
JCCF later announced in August 2020 that Grabher’s case would get a full day appeal hearing on January 19, 2021.
The case will be argued today through video-conference at the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal; a live webcast of the proceedings will be streamed through the Nova Scotia courts’ website.
“Mr. Grabher should be able to proudly display his last name without a court ruling that it is offensive,” commented JCCF litigation manager Jay Cameron, who serves as counsel for Grabher.
“Fortunately, this matter is being revisited by the Court of Appeal and we look forward to their decision.”
