A civil union is a legally recognized relationship, known by a variety of other names, that grants some or all of the rights of marriage, with the adoption of children being a common exception. Many jurisdictions that maintain civil unions recognize a foreign union as equivalent to their own, and the marriages of same-sex couples performed abroad may themselves be recognized as civil unions in jurisdictions that only offer the latter.
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Associated With
Common-law marriage and civil union are both institutions that grant some legal recognition to a couple relationship without a formal marriage ceremony.
A civil union offers many of the legal protections of marriage without using the marriage institution itself, typically created to extend recognition to couples excluded from marriage.
Sources
Civil Union (Wikipedia)
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Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage, with child adoption being a common exception.
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