The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 plus 10 letter word NOLO CONTENDERE
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
N
O
L
O
C
O
N
T
E
N
D
E
R
E
More clues leading to the result NOLO CONTENDERE
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "legal plea" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case legal plea = nolo contendere.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.