  In the present work we review the most prominent lepton flavor violating
processes ($\mu \ra e\gamma$, $\mu \ra 3e$, $(\mu , e)$ conversion, $M-\bar M$
oscillations etc), in the context of unified gauge theories. Many currently
fashionable extensions of the standard model are considered, such as: {\it i)}
extensions of the fermion sector (right-handed neutrino); {\it ii)} minimal
extensions involving additional Higgs scalars (more than one isodoublets,
singly and doubly charged isosinglets, isotriplets with doubly charged members
etc.); {\it iii)} supersymmetric or superstring inspired unified models
emphasizing the implications of the renormalization group equations in the
leptonic sector. Special attention is given to the experimentaly most
interesting $(\mu - e)$ conversion in the presence of nuclei. The relevant
nuclear aspects of the amplitudes are discussed in a number of fashionable
nuclear models. The main features of the relevant experiments are also
discussed, and detailed predictions of the above models are compared to the
present experimental limits.
