Crossword Genius

Upright Cockney’s present before court (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

erect

'upright' is the definition.
(I know that upright can be written as erect)

'cockney's present before court' is the wordplay.
'cockney's present' becomes ''ere' ('here' - both can mean in attendance - said with the 'H' dropped - a cockney accent.).
'before' says to put letters next to each other.
'court' becomes 'ct' (abbreviation used in road names).
'ere'+'ct'='ERECT'

(Other definitions for erect that I've seen before include "Upright; construct" , "Construct, build" , "Not having a list" , "Assemble" , "Standing straight" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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