friend in court

1. Also, friends in high places. A person or persons who can help by virtue of their important position. For example, With a friend in court, he has a good chance of getting the contract, or Jim thinks he can get out of paying the fine; he has friends in high places. This expression alludes to the power of a person at the royal court. With the decline of monarchies, high places came into more common use. [c. 1400]

Example Sentences

McCorkle shot and killed 26-year-old Richard Conn on July 5, 2014, after Conn identified McCorkle’s friend in court.

Read more on Washington Times

Thereupon Chunder, perceiving that he had lost his friend in court, magnanimously said: "I cannot fight an antagonist who is unprovided with a seconder, and will wait until Mr Bodgers is recuperated."

Read more on Project Gutenberg

The memorandum says that Inerfeld recently claimed to be "facing off a friend in court right now, and I'm going to crush him, move into his house, drive his car, and f*** his wife, his lawyers' too."

Read more on Reuters

For one thing, he won for his cause a powerful friend in court: the Justice Department.

Read more on Time Magazine Archive

The unions may have a friend in court.

Read more on Time Magazine Archive