Regardless of the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union, the EU remains a potent economic and political force on the international stage. American businesses, and their lawyers, cannot afford to ignore its institutions and law, because the Union is America's largest trading partner. While the book places the Union in its historical and jurisprudential context and parses its institutional and constitutional structure, its focus is squarely upon the exposition of business law. It introduces American law students and lawyers to substantive law of the Union focusing upon free movement (of goods, workers, the self-employed, cross-border service providers, business entities, and capital), competition law, merger control, state subsidies, and cross-border investment regulation.

Although the presentation excerpts seminal cases in each area of business law, its format does not resemble the traditional law school casebook. The focus is upon exposition and explanation, with the author (assisted by practitioners) offering synthesis, analysis and context in each substantive area of law under observation.

The second edition both expands the scope of the issues presented and updates the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice and acts of the Commission and other EU institutions.