The original Brussels Regulation (Regulation (EC) 44/2001) was the key European instrument on jurisdiction and enforcement issues in civil and commercial matters. It was applied by the courts of all 28 EU member states. Since 10 January 2015, however, member state courts (including those in the UK and Denmark) have applied the Recast and the original Brussels Regulation has largely been repealed.

The original Brussels Regulation is widely considered to have been a successful European instrument. However, there had been concerns about aspects of its application, in particular in relation to its lis pendens provisions (that is, the provisions concerning related proceedings). Frequently, concerns focused less on the language of the original Brussels Regulation itself and more on its application by member state courts and the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), often raising delicate issues as to the "mutual trust" between member state courts (see, for example, the controversial CJEU decision in Erich Gasser GmbH v MISAT Srl, discussed further below). The Recast seeks to address several of these concerns. The key changes in the Recast for commercial parties are considered in detail below.