A Canadian man has spent years battling to regain his personalized license plate after officials revoked it following a complaint that it could be interpreted as promoting violence against women. Lorne Grabher said the plate simply displays his family surname, which has been part of his family’s Austrian-German heritage for generations.

The controversy began after a McGill University professor argued that the word “GRABHER” could be associated with remarks made by then-U.S. President Donald Trump. As a result, Nova Scotia’s Registrar of Motor Vehicles cancelled the personalized plate, prompting Grabher to challenge the decision in court.

In a ruling related to the case, the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia awarded Grabher 750 Canadian dollars to cover legal costs he had previously paid during the proceedings. His lawyer argued there was no evidence linking the license plate to Donald Trump and maintained that the case was about protecting freedom of expression rather than political speech.

Grabher has consistently said the plate was originally purchased as a gift for his late father in 1990 and was intended to honor their family name. The legal dispute continued as the courts considered whether the government was justified in revoking a personalized plate that matched a person’s surname.