A controversial legal theory that could completely upend American elections may not be resolved by the Supreme Court this year. Some legal experts warn there will be chaos ahead of 2024 if the high court doesn’t act.

Some conservative legal scholars and attorneys have been advancing a once-fringe idea known as the independent state legislature theory, which gives state courts little — to no — role in interpreting election laws set by state legislatures.

But now the future of the key Supreme Court case addressing the theory — Moore v. Harper — is in question because a state-level ruling could make it moot. The nation’s highest court has also signaled that it may skip out on issuing a decision. That concerns even some strident critics of ISL, who worry that the lack of a clear decision risks injecting disarray into the 2024 election and the litigation that is guaranteed to accompany it.