In the UK the canard of the 'common-law marriage' persists in some quarters, tho lawyers never tire of denying its validity and denouncing it as a complete myth — I remember one who cogently and pithily summed it up by saying, "You might as well call a nut cutlet a common-law steak".

But we do have a fully legal and recognised system for gay/lesbian partnerships which brings many of the same rights as marriage for heterosexuals: it involves the same sort of formal ceremony before the registrar, and is called a Civil Partnership. Many [indeed most] of my gay friends in long-term relationships have entered into Civil Partnerships & feel much happier & more secure as a result.

It is my impression that this is the sort of thing that many of the States of the Union are feeling towards, or in some cases have achieved, Am I right about that?