International Institute for the Unification of Private Law
French: Institut international pour l’unification du droit privé
Type: Intergovernmental Organization
Founded: 1926 (League of Nations), re-established in 1940
Headquarters: Rome, Italy (Villa Aldobrandini)
Member States: 65 (as of 2023)
Official Website: www.unidroit.org(https://www.unidroit.org)
Overview
UNIDROIT is an independent intergovernmental organization dedicated to harmonizing and coordinating private international law between states through:
- Uniform rules
- International conventions
- Model laws
- Legal guides
Founded under the League of Nations (1926), it was re-established in 1940 via a multilateral treaty, the UNIDROIT Statute.
Objectives and Activities
UNIDROIT’s primary mission is to modernize, harmonize, and coordinate private and commercial law globally.
Key Deliverables:
- International Conventions
- Model Laws
- Principles and Guidelines
- Legal and Contractual Guides
Examples of instruments: - UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts (1994, 2004, 2010, 2016) - ALI/UNIDROIT Principles of Transnational Civil Procedure (2004)
Note: Unlike the CISG (Convention on the International Sale of Goods), UNIDROIT Principles apply only when parties explicitly choose them.
Working Methods
1. Preliminary Stage
- The Secretariat conducts a feasibility study and comparative legal analysis.
- Proposal reviewed by the Governing Council.
- If approved, a drafting committee is formed.
2. Intergovernmental Negotiation and Adoption
- Preliminary draft is reviewed and revised by governmental experts.
- If consensus is reached, a Diplomatic Conference adopts it as an international convention.
International Cooperation
UNIDROIT works closely with several organizations:
- UNCITRAL (United Nations Commission on International Trade Law)
- The Hague Conference on Private International Law
- UNESCO, FAO, and IFAD
These collaborations lead to co-developed instruments and shared legal projects.
Network of Correspondents
UNIDROIT maintains a network of correspondents — experts in law from Member and non-Member States. They provide up-to-date legal information, supporting UNIDROIT’s research and global legal harmonization work.
Membership
States can join UNIDROIT by acceding to its Statute.
Current Member States: 65 (as of 2023)
Former Members:
- Ecuador (1940–1964)
- Lebanon (1958–1964)
- Senegal (1991–1997)
Defunct Member States:
- Czechoslovakia
- East Germany
- United Arab Republic
- Yugoslavia
Key Instruments
A. Conventions
UNIDROIT has drafted and adopted several binding treaties:
- Uniform Law on the International Sale of Goods – The Hague, 1964
- Uniform Law on the Formation of Contracts – The Hague, 1964
- International Convention on Travel Contracts – Brussels, 1970
- Uniform Law on the Form of an International Will – Washington D.C., 1973
- Agency in the International Sale of Goods – Geneva, 1983
- International Financial Leasing – Ottawa, 1988
- International Factoring – Ottawa, 1988
- Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects – Rome, 1995
- Cape Town Convention on Mobile Equipment – Cape Town, 2001
- Protocol on Aircraft (2001)
- Protocol on Railway Rolling Stock (2007)
- Protocol on Space Assets (2012)
- Protocol on Mining, Agricultural and Construction Equipment (2019)
- Geneva Securities Convention – Geneva, 2009
UNIDROIT is the depositary of the Cape Town Convention and the Geneva Securities Convention.
B. Soft Law Instruments
UNIDROIT also produces non-binding instruments, including:
- UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts (1994, 2004, 2010, 2016)
- ALI / UNIDROIT Principles of Transnational Civil Procedure (2004)
- Model Provisions on State Ownership of Undiscovered Cultural Objects (2011)
- Principles on the Operation of Close-Out Netting Provisions (2013)
- UNIDROIT/FAO/IFAD Legal Guide on Contract Farming (2015)
- ELI/UNIDROIT Model European Rules of Civil Procedure (2020)
- UNIDROIT/IFAD Legal Guide on Agricultural Land Investment Contracts (2021)
Publications
Uniform Law Review
- Quarterly journal published since 1996 by Oxford University Press
- Covers international and comparative private law.
Library and Database
- Collection of over 260,000 texts
- Access to 450+ periodicals
- Remote access to:
- Westlaw
- EUR-Lex
- UNILEX
See Also
- Rome I Regulation(https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32008R0593)
- Uniform Act(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_act)
- UNCITRAL(https://uncitral.un.org)
- World Trade Organization(https://www.wto.org)
External Links
- 🌐 UNIDROIT Official Website(https://www.unidroit.org)
- 📘 UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts, 2016(https://www.unidroit.org/instruments/commercial-contracts/unidroit-principles-2016)