A driver has filed a judicial review challenging the Transport Department’s decision to reject his application for the personalized vehicle registration mark “YUT G0R,” while approving the similar mark “1 G0R.”
The applicant, Leung Hoya Ho-yut, lodged the application yesterday, seeking to overturn the department’s decision on his submission made on November 7 last year.
According to court documents, the Transport Department rejected the application after interpreting the proposed registration mark as a phonetic reference to the common nickname for the head of a specific government department.
The Commissioner for Transport reasoned that the mark “would likely cause a reasonable person to believe that the vehicle might be representing or belonging to the government or any public body.”
In his submission, Leung said “YUT G0R” is derived from his name. He argued that the department ignored his stated intent and unilaterally interpreted the mark as a phonetic hint at a senior official’s nickname.
Leung said applications for personalized registration marks should be assessed based on objective criteria. However, he contended that the department merely drew a link between the phonetic reference and the conclusion that the mark could mislead the public into thinking the vehicle represented the government.
To highlight what he described as inconsistency, Leung pointed to the approved plate “1 G0R,” which he argued is even more likely to evoke a similar association.
He said allowing one application while rejecting another with nearly the same meaning demonstrates a lack of objectivity and predictability in the department’s decision-making.
Leung also stressed that personalized registration marks can carry multiple interpretations and that plates are only one of several ways to identify official vehicles, which also include official markings, logos, and vehicle models.
