Avow or advow

AVOW or ADVOW, practice. Signifies to justify or maintain an act formerlydone. For example, when replevin is brought for a thing distrained, and thedistrainer justifies the taking, he is said to avow. Termes de la Ley. Thisword also signifies to bring forth anything. Formerly when a stolen thingwas found in the possession of any one" he was bound advocare, i. e. toproduce the seller from whom he alleged he had bought it, to justify thesale, and so on till they found the thief. Afterwards the word was taken tomean anything which a man admitted to be his own or done by him, and in thissense it is mentioned in Fleta, lib. 1, c. 5, par 4. Cunn., Dict. h.t.