WRIT OF TRESPASS - This writ lies
where a party claims damages for a trespass committed
against his person, or tangible and corporeal property.
See Trespass.
WRIT OF TRESPASS ON THE CASE - A
writ which lies where a party sues for damages for
any wrong or cause of complaint to which covenant
or trespass will not apply.
This action originates in the power given by the
statute of Westm. 2, to the clerks of chancery to
frame new writs in consimili casu with writs already
known. Under this power they constructed many writs
for different injuries, which were considered as in
consimili casu, with, that is, to bear a certain analogy
to a trespass. The new writs invented for the cases
supposed to bear such analogy, have received, accordingly,
the appellation of writs of trespass on the case,
as being founded on the particular circumstances of
the case thus requiring a remedy, and, to distinguish
them from the old writ of trespass and the injuries
themselves, which are the subjects of such writs,
are not called trespasses, but have the general name
of torts, wrong or grievances.
The writs of trespass on the case, though invented
thus in various forms, according to the nature of
the different wrongs which respectively called them
forth began nevertheless, to be viewed as constituting
collectively a new individual form of action; and
this new genus took its place, by the name of Trespass
on the case, among the more ancient actions of debt,
covenant, trespass, etc. Such being the nature of
this action, it comprises, of course, many different
species. There are two, however, of more frequent
use than any other species of trespass on the case,
or, perhaps, than any other firm of action whatever.
These are assumpsit and trover.
