I was at a seminar where a commitment ceremony was described. The group discussed what, if any, legal standing this ceremony had. We all agreed that there were no legal grounds for this to be considered an official marriage. There were no legal documents signed or authorized.
But I was curious enough to look a bit farther. I found this on the Unmarried Equality website:
“When UE talks about a commitment ceremony, we mean an event that does not involve laws or government agencies in any way; there’s no license or certificate, and the participants’ legal status does not change. Therefore, we recommend that couples who have commitment ceremonies should not say they are married, especially not on any official forms, and most especially not if they live in common-law states.”
So what is the purpose other than to have an expensive party? I guess the rationale will be different of each couple and their intent. Being what people call a practical person, I do not seem the purpose of a large declaration of commitment. Commitment is a personal driver and should not need large scale validation. But that is only my opinion.