Former Liberal brings case (7)
I believe the answer is:
example
'case' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'former liberal' is the wordplay.
'former' becomes 'ex' (prefix meaning former or onetime).
'liberal' becomes 'ample' (I've seen this in another clue).
'ex'+'ample'='EXAMPLE'
'brings' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for example that I've seen before include "Instance, specimen" , "Specimen, sample" , "Illustrative exercise" , "Representative object" , "Instance or illustration" .)