The West Hollywood City Council unanimously approved an ordinance that allows multi-partner relationships (like a so-called throuple) to formally register as a domestic relationship and receive certain legal protections at the local level, such as visitation rights in jail and rental privileges. A “multi-partner relationship,” per the ordinance, requires that the individuals involved share “the common necessities of life,” are over age 18, are competent enough to enter a contract, are all participating consensually, are “responsible for one another’s welfare,” and are not related by blood or a member of an already declared partnership. There is no expressed limit to the number of individuals who may be involved in a recognized multi-partner relationship, and people living outside the city can register their relationship.
The idea of was brought to Councilmember Chelsea Lee Byers last year by Christina Fialho, an attorney who founded the “Rewrite the BiLine” organization that “reshape[s] cultural norms and drive[s] policy change” through media narratives to “advance health equity, economic opportunity, and civil rights for bi+ people and non-nuclear families.” Fialho told the Los Angeles Times that “this law is just the beginning. . . . I think it makes it possible for people to dream about a future they once thought was out of reach.” According to public records, the city council deemed it “necessary” to recognize “diverse relationship structures,” such as those involving more than two adults, because they are “becoming increasingly common.” The city frames the ordinance as an anti-discrimination measure with symbolic value:
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