The default constructor

All test cases require a default constructor because, sometimes, depending on the test runner used, this is the only constructor that is invoked, and is also used for serialization.

According to the documentation, this method is not intended to be used by "mere mortals" without calling setName(String name).

Therefore, to appease the Gods, a common pattern is to use a default test case name in this constructor and invoke the given name constructor afterwards:

public class MyTestCase extends TestCase {
 public MyTestCase() {
 this("MyTestCase Default Name");
 }

   public MyTestCase(String name) {
      super(name);
   }
}

The given name constructor

This constructor takes a name as an argument to label the test case. It will appear in test reports and would be of much help when you try to identify where failed tests have come from.

The setName() method

There are some classes that extend TestCase that don't provide a given name constructor. In such cases, the only alternative is to call setName(String name).