friend in court

friend in court idiom
Also, friends in high places. A person or persons who can help by virtue of their important position. For example, With a friend in court, he has a good chance of getting the contract, or Jim thinks he can get out of paying the fine; he has friends in high places. This expression alludes to the power of a person at the royal court. With the decline of monarchies, high places came into more common use. [c. 1400]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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