AP

The story of the 2015 offseason could be the story of the 2016 offseason, at least for the early portions of it.

Via Reuters, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has scheduled oral argument in the Tom Brady case for March 3.

The NFL’s lawyer for the appeal, former U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement, requested that the argument be set for March 3 or 4 based on a potential conflict with a case he has pending before the United States Supreme Court.

The Brady case eventually could end in the U.S. Supreme Court, too. Whoever loses before the Second Circuit will have appeal rights. However, the Supreme Court first must agree to accept an appeal before resolving it.

Considering the fact that the judge who scrapped the four-game suspension stopped short of resolving all issues raised by the case, a chance remains that the litigation won’t be fully resolved until Brady retires — even if he makes good on his plans to play another 10 years.