Eagerly accept drink before appearing in court (3,2)
I believe the answer is:
lap up
'eagerly accept' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'drink before appearing in court' is the wordplay.
'drink' becomes 'lap' (to lap is to drink up).
'before' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'appearing in court' becomes 'up' (I've seen this in other clues).
'lap'+'up'='LAP UP'
(Other definitions for lap up that I've seen before include "of future monarch?" , "Accept with obvious pleasure" , "Accept eagerly" , "Relish (with the tongue?)" , "Eagerly enjoy" .)