3 Chi J Intl L 333
Paul B. Stephan

The unification of law across multiple jurisdiction calls for the application of the unified law by an adjudicatory body. This article discusses how the difficulties associated with such application will obscure an array of unification projects. It begins by discussing the role adjudicatory bodies play in unifying law. Then it classifies the approaches these bodies use in unification projects as the dispersion approach and the centralized approach. The article goes on to distinguish coordination and defection problems in international dealings through the use of game theory, which is often applied to international relations. While some coordination problems can be solved by adjudicatory bodies, other coordination problems, as well as defection problems, are much more challenging. Current unification projects that have been unsuccessful, in the areas of carriage of goods, antitrust, and environmental regulations, are then presented to illustrate how problems in application, whether through the dispersion or centralized approach, can thwart unification.