Appeal for directions to settlement (8)
I believe the answer is:
entreaty
'appeal' is the definition.
(I know that appeal can be written as entreaty)
'directions to settlement' is the wordplay.
'directions' becomes 'en' (east and north).
'to settlement' becomes 'treaty' (I've seen this before).
'en'+'treaty'='ENTREATY'
'for' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for entreaty that I've seen before include "petition" , "suit" , "An earnest or emotional request" , "Earnest plea" , "Earnest or urgent request" .)