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The Williams Project on Sexual Orientation Law will host a three-on-three debate Monday at the UCLA School of Law, addressing whether same-sex couples should have rights recognized by the law.

The debate comes three months after former Gov. Gray Davis signed legislation granting same-sex couples in California many legal rights previously available only to married couples and less than a month after the Massachusetts’ Supreme Judicial Court ruled to allow gay marriage in the state.

The Massachusetts court provided a 180-day period delaying the implementation of its decision, giving state lawmakers enough time to pass legislation granting same-sex couples the right to civil union.

Though the Massachusetts ruling is significant, law Professor Grace Blumberg said California is “more special than Massachusetts” because of the domestic partners legislation Davis signed in August.

“(The law) now treats domestic partners as though they are spouses for every purpose in California. ... It’s the only state where this has been done without a court coming in and saying, ‘You have to do it,’” said Blumberg, who will be arguing at Monday’s debate in favor of legal recognition of same-sex couples.

The issue of legally recognizing same-sex relationships is one that addresses deeper issues than granting those couples rights like child support and shared property, Blumberg added.

“Every human being should have a right to have his or her intimate relationship with another human being recognized. ... It’s about dignity,” she said.

Erwin Chemerinsky, a USC law professor and executive director of Equality California, an organization that promotes equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Californians, will join Blumberg on the affirmative side of the debate.

Brigham Young University law Professors William Duncan and Lynn Wardle, and Maggie Gallagher, president of the Institute for Marriage and Public Policy, will argue against legalizing gay marriage, civil unions and domestic partnerships.

Legally recognizing same-sex couples would be harmful to society, particularly to families with children, said Wardle, who believes marriage should be between a man and a woman.

“It’s best for children, and it’s best for society,” he said.

The event is free and open to the public. It will be held in room 1430 at the law school. To register, call (310) 825-0971.