A high-profile lawsuit challenging the judicial branch’s sex discrimination policies has put a spotlight on the judiciary’s procedures for assigning cases to visiting judges and whether changes to it are needed to avoid conflicts of interest in rare situations.

Court watchers say the circumstances that led to an alleged conflict in Caryn Strickland’s case are incredibly uncommon, but it could be beneficial for lawmakers and the judiciary to reconsider protocols surrounding intercircuit assignments when the judiciary is named in litigation.