Soldiers with American lawyer before home rule (6)
I believe the answer is:
ordain
'rule' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'soldiers with american lawyer before home' is the wordplay.
'soldiers' becomes 'or' (Other Rank).
'with' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'american lawyer' becomes 'da' (abbreviation for District Attorney).
'before' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'home' becomes 'in' ('he's home' can mean 'he's in').
'or'+'da'+'in'='ORDAIN'
(Other definitions for ordain that I've seen before include "Consecrate as priest" , "frock" , "Destine" , "Appoint - admit to holy orders" , "Make a decree" .)