The Misguided Quest: The Clear Case against UNIDROIT Available to Purchase

The purpose of this article is to give a perspective on the latest attempt, via a multinational agreement, to limit and control the international trade in cultural artifacts. The scope of the proposed UNIDROIT agreement goes well beyond the subject matter of the conference — ‘Art Theft and its Control’. This is not an international instrument whose primary focus relates to stolen objects. On this subject, there is a broad consensus, although civil law countries still provide greater deference to purchaser's rights over possessor's rights.