PORTLAND — A judge will decide in the coming days whether criminal charges against well-known Windham businessman Kaile Warren should be dismissed or if the case should proceed to trial later this year.

Justice Thomas Warren heard arguments on Kaile Warren’s motion to dismiss this morning at Cumberland County Superior Court. The hearing lasted about an hour and Justice Warren said he expected to issue a decision as soon as possible.

Kaile Warren founded the Rent-A-Husband handyman business in 1996 and gained national media attention for his franchise concept, including multiple appearances on ”The Oprah Winfrey Show” and a contract to appear regularly on CBS’ ”The Early Show.”

He was indicted by a grand jury in December and again in April on felony counts of securities fraud, theft by deception and sales of unregistered securities. Warren has pleaded not guilty and has publicly criticized the state for seeking the charges against him.

Daniel Lilley and Darrick Banda, Warren’s lawyers, claim that if the Rent-A-Husband founder in fact broke any laws, he did so unintentionally and he was simply acting on the advice of his former law firm, Preti Flaherty.

Lilley says the entire case against Warren should be dismissed because he did not possess the required “culpable state of mind.”

Assistant Attorney General Michael Colleran said Warren can be held criminally responsible for fraud and for selling unregistered securities even if Warren had no criminal intent or knowledge that the securities might have been unlawful.

Leaders at Preti Flaherty have declined to comment on Warren’s claim that the firm is to blame for his legal trouble.