24 down
Critical
secondary
characters
in
office
come
across
major
flaws
(5)
Critical secondary characters in office come across major flaws (5)
hints
0
checks
0
hints
The definition is at the beginning of the clue.
How the clue works
The definition is Critical, meaning central or crucial, which FOCAL means. The "secondary characters" are the second letters of each following word: ofFice, cOme, aCross, mAjor, flaws — giving F, O, C, A, L.