 The Sultan of Brunei 's stake in the ownership of the hotel drew controversy in April 2014 when he initiated the first phase of a three @-@ phase plan to adapt Brunei 's legal system to include aspects of Sharia law implicating his approval of the persecution of homosexuals in the complex legal system there ( a two part system involving separate courts and legislation for Islamic and non @-@ Islamic citizens ) . In protest , a United States national LGBT advocacy organization , the Gill Action Fund , canceled its reservation to hold a conference of major donors at the Beverly Hills Hotel and demanded a refund of its deposit . The hotel management responded by issuing a statement asserting that it does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation . Fashion designers Brian Atwood and Peter Som subsequently called for wider protests , urging the fashion industry to boycott all of the hotels owned by the Dorchester Collection . 
