law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

, a colloquy is a routine, highly formalized conversation. Conversations among the judge and lawyers (as opposed to

testimony In law and in religion, testimony is a solemn attestation as to the truth of a matter. Etymology The words "testimony" and "testify" both derive from the Latin word ''testis'', referring to the notion of a disinterested third-party witness. ...

under

oath Traditionally an oath (from Anglo-Saxon ', also called plight) is either a statement of fact or a promise taken by a sacrality as a sign of verity. A common legal substitute for those who conscientiously object to making sacred oaths is to g ...

) are colloquies. The term may be applied to the conversation that takes place when a defendant enters into a plea bargain and the judge is supposed to verify that the defendant understands that he is waiving his right to a

jury trial A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a significan ...

. In criminal court, a colloquy is an investigation within a defendant's plea to reassure that the plea was given "knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently".''Commonwealth v. Yoemans''
24 A.3d 1044 (Pa. Super. 2011), citing ''Commonwealth v. Fluharty'', 632 A.2d 312, 314 (Pa. Super. 1993); accessed December 11, 2019. The defendant needs to understand the charges against him, the penalties that he will face, and his rights before entering into a guilty plea. In the US, that includes describing the rights guaranteed by the Fifth and Sixth Amendments as well as a caution that non-citizens who are convicted of crimes risk expulsion from the country. A defendant who denies guilt may still "plead down"—plead to a lesser offense than the accusation, provided the Court allows it, and provided the accused intelligently concludes on an open record that a plea is in her/his best interest (such as avoiding incarceration or a more serious charge/conviction).

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