In April 2019 following the implementation of a new penal code in Brunei that makes gay sex and adultery punishable by death by stoning, the hotel and other Dorchester properties faced renewed calls for boycott. The boycott has attracted support from LA City Comptroller Ron Galperin and celebrities including George Clooney, Elton John, and Ellen DeGeneres. Following this, the LA City Council passed a resolution to bar the city from conducting business at the hotel and urging city residents not to patronize it. The Dorchester Collection responded by saying they "do not tolerate any form of discrimination." In May 2019, the Sultan of Brunei responded, saying that the county's "de facto moratorium" on capital punishment would apply to cases under the new laws, and promised to ratify the UN Convention against Torture. Despite this, LA City Councilman Paul Koretz asked the city to continue its boycott of the hotel.