Liable to steal clear and end grief, possibly (5-8)
I believe the answer is:
light-fingered
'liable to steal' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'clear and end grief possibly' is the wordplay.
'clear' becomes 'light' (**).
'and' says to put letters next to each other.
'possibly' is an anagram indicator.
'end'+'grief'='endgrief'
'endgrief' with letters rearranged gives 'fingered'.
'light'+'fingered'='LIGHT-FINGERED'
(Other definitions for light-fingered that I've seen before include "Thievish" , "Prone to steal" , "Having a propensity for stealing" , "Like a pickpocket" , "Inclined to steal" .)