Legal Case Summary
The Six Carpenters Case [1572] EngR 452
Trespass – Stolen goods
Facts
Six carpenters (S) were served with wine and bread at a tavern which they paid for. S requested more wine and bread afterwards, of which they were served, by this time they refused to pay. John Vaux (J) brought an action of trespass against Thomas Newman and the five other carpenters.
Issue
The issue in question in the present case was whether the non-payment by S made the entry into the tavern tortious and therefore trespass.
Decision/Outcome
There was no trespass. When an entry, authority, or licence, is given to any one by the law, and he abuses it, he shall be a trespasser ab initio, however it will not be trespass where the entry or authority is given by the party and abused. Chic Fashions (West Wales) v. Jones [1968] 2 QB 299 doubts the ratio in the instant case that if a man abuses an authority given by law, he becomes a trespasser ab initio, due to the effect this would have on the ability of constables to execute search warrants. Chic Fashions claims that the law has been gradually altered since the instant case to give greater protection to constables. In that case it was held that a constable who enters private property by virtue of a search warrant is entitled to seize not only goods reasonably believed to be covered by the warrant but also any other goods which he honestly and reasonably believes to have been stolen.
Updated 20 March 2026
This case summary remains broadly accurate as a statement of the historical common law principle established in The Six Carpenters’ Case (1610) 8 Co Rep 146a. The core rule — that abuse of a licence given by law renders the entrant a trespasser ab initio, whereas abuse of a licence given by a private party does not — continues to be cited in tort law scholarship and remains part of the foundational common law.
The reference to Chic Fashions (West Wales) Ltd v Jones [1968] 2 QB 299 is accurate in substance. However, readers should note that the law on police powers of search and seizure has been substantially developed and largely superseded by statute. The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) now governs most police search and seizure powers in England and Wales and provides the primary framework in this area, rendering much of the common law discussed in Chic Fashions of historical rather than direct practical relevance. The trespass ab initio doctrine itself retains academic significance but has limited modern practical application given the extensive statutory framework now governing lawful authority to enter property.
One minor point: the citation given in the article heading ([1572] EngR 452) is non-standard. The case is more conventionally cited as (1610) 8 Co Rep 146a and readers should use that citation when researching the case.
