Magistrate abandoning rate reforms in disgrace (6)
I believe the answer is:
stigma
'disgrace' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'magistrate abandoning rate reforms' is the wordplay.
'abandoning' is a deletion indicator.
'reforms' indicates anagramming the letters.
'magistrate' with 'rate' taken out is 'magist'.
'magist' with letters rearranged gives 'STIGMA'.
'in' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for stigma that I've seen before include "A stain as on character" , "Brand or mark of infamy" , "Blot" , "Mark of shame or social disgrace" , "Mark of dishonour" .)