There is no playbook for what happens next in the Southern District of Texas, where bankruptcy Judge David Jones resigned on Sunday after confirming a romantic relationship with former Jackson Walker bankruptcy partner Elizabeth Freeman to the Wall Street Journal.

Never in the history of corporate restructuring has such an influential bankruptcy judge stepped down under such circumstances, bankruptcy lawyers and ethics experts interviewed for this story said. While the outcome of scores of corporate Chapter 11s hang in the balance, the implications for Jones and Jackson Walker will largely depend on who knew what when.