South Korea’s Central District Court on Monday summoned the 12 North Korean defectors who arrived in Seoul in May to appear and verify their condition.

The court order, which follows more than two months of scrutiny over the well-being of the 12 restaurant employees, came with little additional detail, but set the stage for a standoff between the judiciary and the National Intelligence Service (NIS), which rejected the court’s order.

The Lawyers for Democratic Society, or Minbyun, has requestedto meet the defectors to verify they left of their own free will and has called for an “evaluation for personal