In Unfulfilled Union Garth Stevenson examines such topics as the origins and objectives of Confederation and the BNA Act of 1867, the interpretation of Canada's federal constitution by the courts, the impact of economic regionalism and Quebec nationalism, financial relations between the federal and provincial levels of government, the consequences of federalism for economic policy, the sources of federal-provincial conflicts and the means to resolve them, and the lengthy but inconclusive efforts to reform the constitution through federal-provincial agreement, particularly since Quebec's Quiet Revolution in the 1960s. Although institutional factors such as the defects of the original constitution and the sometimes questionable interpretations of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council are given due attention, Stevenson emphasizes the political economy of Canada, including its relationship with the United States, and the vitality of Quebec nationalism as the major reasons Canada has not achieved the same level of centralization and stability as other federations in the industrialized world.

This updated edition of Unfulfilled Union includes a new introduction that discusses the extensive changes that have taken place in Canadian federalism since that time.