A more thorough explanation:

Avowal is a declaration made by an attorney during a trial. It is a statement made by the attorney representing a party in a lawsuit, after the jury has been removed from the courtroom. The purpose of an avowal is to request the admission of particular testimony from a witness that would otherwise be inadmissible because it has been successfully objected to during the trial.

There are two main purposes of an avowal:

• It allows the attorney to have the court learn what a witness would have replied to a question had opposing counsel not made an objection to the question sustained by the court.
• It provides the interrogator with an opportunity to offer evidence that contradicts the disputed testimony.

For example, if a witness is asked a question during a trial, and the opposing counsel objects to the question, the judge may sustain the objection and not allow the witness to answer. The attorney can then make an avowal, which is a statement that tells the court what the witness would have said if they were allowed to answer the question. This can be important if the testimony is crucial to the case.

An avowal can be stated either orally or in writing, depending on the preference of the court. However, some courts have a preference for an oral avowal.

If, upon appeal, an appellate court decides that a witness should have been allowed to respond to such questions before a jury, an avowal will be a record of the witness's response.

Overall, an avowal is a tool that attorneys can use to ensure that important testimony is heard by the court, even if it was initially objected to by opposing counsel.