The European Union is rarely out of the news and, as it deals with the consequences of the Brexit vote and struggles to emerge from the eurozone crisis, it faces difficult questions about its future. In this debate, the law has a central role to play, whether the issue be the governance of the eurozone, the internal market, "clawing back powers from Europe," or reducing so-called "Brussels red tape."

In this Very Short Introduction Anthony Arnull looks at the laws and legal system of the European Union, including EU courts, and discusses the range of issues that the European...