Under its provisions, which define a new class of domestic violence victims, lesbians and homosexuals who are presently cohabiting as a nontraditional family with or without children, or who have previously cohabited in a nontraditional family, are protected. The act designates 13 specific acts of criminal behavior that constitute domestic violence: homicide, assault, terroristic threats, kidnapping, criminal restraint, false imprisonment, sexual assault, criminal sexual conduct, lewdness, criminal mischief, burglary, criminal trespass, and harassment. This article addresses the novel legal situations confronting the courts in determining issues related victim eligibility, domestic partnership, and child visitation and custody among homosexual couples; identifies the new class of domestic violence victims; correlates homosexual abuse with heterosexual domestic violence; and reviews the emerging legal doctrines of a changing society. 317 notes and 5 appendixes