Jay Edelson’s lawsuit against three serial objector lawyers in class actions took an unusual turn after the primary defendant, Christopher Bandas, offered to end the case last month with a judgment against himself—and Edelson rejected it.

The class action bar is closely watching the case because it addresses the controversial issue of “objector blackmail,” which is when objector lawyers extort payments to drop their appeals challenging class action settlements. In fact, an upcoming amendment to the federal class action rules requires court approval of such payments, currently done in secret.