Milan, Italy (CNN) -- A judge in Italy is set to announce whether Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will face an immediate trial on charges of abuse of power and sex with an underage prostitute.
Prosecutors in Milan filed the request for trial last week, setting in motion a five-day clock for Judge Cristina di Censo to make a decision.
She can order the trial to go ahead without the traditional preliminary hearing, as Milan chief prosecutor Edmundo Bruti Liberati requested, or dismiss it, allowing investigations to continue to determine if there is enough evidence for trial.
She can also refer the case to another jurisdiction, or request one more day to make her decision.
Berlusconi's lawyers have argued that the Milan courts do not have jurisdiction -- because of where the alleged crimes were committed -- or the authority to try a prime minister.
Prosecutors are investigating claims that Berlusconi paid for sex with nightclub dancer Karima El Mahrough, who was 17 at the time of the alleged activity, and later intervened with the police after she was arrested on an unrelated charge.
Berlusconi dismissed the accusations as "groundless" when the prosecution request was filed Wednesday, saying the call for a trial was a "farce". CNN
