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The fate of Ruth's Chris Steak House now is in the hands of a district judge who will decide whether the struggling, upscale restaurant must remain committed to the seven years left on its downtown Aspen lease, which commands $35,412 a month.

A three-day trial wrapped up Wednesday in Pitkin County District Court, where Ruth's Chris was pitted against its landlord, Galena Corner, in a dispute about outdoor dining at the old Guido's Swiss Inn space, at the corner of Cooper Avenue and Galena Street.

The trial came after Colorado Steakhouse, a subsidiary of Ruth's Chris chain, sued Galena Corner, controlled by the Aspen firm M & W Properties, for breach of contract in April 2008. The restaurant wants the court to terminate its lease because of the alleged breach of contract, which would free it up from paying the remaining seven-plus years on its lease, signed in September 2006.

"It's one of the biggest leases I've entered into in my life," testified Tony Mazza, a partner with M & W Properties, which owns and manages a number of downtown Aspen properties, on Wednesday. M & W owns the master lease to the corner building, which is owned by Guidos Swiss Inn LTD Partners.

District Judge Denise Lynch took the case under advisement, saying she expects to deliver a "quick" ruling.

At issue is whether Ruth's Chris' lease allows it to use the north patio facing Cooper Avenue. At trial, attorneys for Ruth's Chris argued that its lease entitled it to the patio, but its ground level neighbor, Royal Street Fine Art, used the spot to store some of its inventory. Ruth's Chris management discovered Royal Street was using the disputed space in April 2007, prompting Colorado Steakhouse to sue a year later.

The Ruth's Chris lease states it was allowed to use the patio in question. Ruth's Chris "shall also have exclusive use of the north-facing patio at the Galena Street side of the building for outdoor dining," reads the lease, a document on which Attorney Kathryn Hopping hinged her closing arguments.