A judge is about to decide whether to block AT&T’s merger with Time Warner. Here’s what you need to know.

The AT&T/Time Warner case could be decided any number of ways. Judge Richard Leon could rule in the government's favor, forcing AT&T to abandon the deal or to sell off key assets such as Turner or DirecTV to move forward. Judge Leon could side with AT&T, saying there is no threat to competition and allowing the deal to proceed unimpeded. In that scenario, AT&T would not be required to divest anything or make any other concessions and could close the deal by June 18.

One wild card is an offer that AT&T has made to assuage its critics. In 2017, the company sent 1,000 letters to rival TV providers saying it was willing to commit to an arbitration process after the merger with any TV service that feels it is being overcharged for Time Warner content. Judge Leon appeared to show strong interest in the arbitration offer, asking witnesses about it on multiple occasions despite efforts by the government to exclude it from consideration in the trial. As a result, some analysts believe Leon could seek a middle-ground approach that mixes in the arbitration offer somehow or, perhaps, a remedy Judge Leon designs himself. He could even ask the two sides to work with him to develop a solution.