Observers having trouble following the play-by-play in the Kobe Bryant rape case aren't alone. Even the NBA star's defense lawyers aren't sure what's what.

They asked a judge this week for a telephone status conference to clarify which issues will be covered in pretrial hearings starting Monday. The request was among a new wave of court documents filed in Eagle, Colo., where Bryant is scheduled to go on trial for sexual assault in a few months.

Lawyers for the 25-year-old basketball star indicated they weren't clear on which issues will be taken up and whether they need to have all their witnesses on hand considering the schedule calls for many more issues than can be addressed during the two days set aside next week.

The problem is that there are so many interested parties.

Bryant wants a fair trial, an impartial jury and for members of the media and public not to learn anymore than they need, or are entitled to know, about his private life. He admits to having extramarital sex but denies the rape allegation.

Prosecutors want the case to go to trial quickly, and for there to be few, if any, appellate issues created during pretrial proceedings.

Bryant's accuser, a 19-year-old resort hotel worker, is fighting to keep evidence about her sexual history from becoming an issue in the trial as well as fodder for the many Web sites that have sprung up featuring her name and photo.

Media lawyers have complained in court filings about everything from access to the courtroom to the amount of information being filed by both the defense and prosecution under seal.

The competing interests have served to slow down the process, but it plods along nonetheless.

Judge Terry Ruckriegle indicated that lawyers should be prepared next week to argue orally about the constitutionality of Colorado's "rape shield" statute. The defense says the law violates Bryant's rights as a defendant because it forces him to prove that his accuser's sexual history is relevant before his lawyers can obtain permission to ask her about it during the trial.

Bryant claims he had consensual sex with the woman, and a jury might be inclined to believe him if they knew more about the woman. The defense claims, for example, that semen recovered from underwear the woman was wearing 18 hours after their encounter was left by someone other than Bryant.

Another issue that Ruckriegle must decide is whether the alleged victim waived her medical and mental health privacy privileges by discussing her allegations against Bryant with her mother, friends and a rape crisis advocate. Ruckriegle began closed-door hearings on the privilege issues on Feb. 2 but, based on his scheduling order, wants to hear more witnesses and arguments.

As packed as the agenda for next week is, more things may still come up.

Just Thursday, the defense complained in a motion that prosecutors have failed to comply with the court's order of Jan. 23 to turn over all items of physical evidence for testing by the defense. The defense says it still wants its experts to examine two pairs of the accuser's underwear — the pair she was wearing when she met Bryant on June 30 and the garment she surrendered when she underwent a sexual assault examination 18 hours later.

When the trial itself begins, it is expected to last about three weeks.