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As to the question of how you would draft the relevant section, something like the following would probably do:

"Where it is shown to the Court's satisfaction that the parties had been living for a period of over __ years in a relationship substantially analogous to marriage, the Court may order that the claimant shall have the same rights and responsibilities as the claimant would have had had they been married or to such lesser rights and responsibilities as to the Court seems just"

Two comments though:

a. It would have helped Ms Williams;
b. it wouldn't leave the status of common law partners more certain or reduce litigation