The actor, director and playwright Steven Berkoff was still waiting last night to discover if he is to face a rare civil trial for rape.

After a four-hour hearing held in private at the central London county court, district judge Christopher Wigfield failed to reach a decision on whether a claim for compensation should be struck out or awarded, or whether a civil trial for liability should go ahead. Judgment was reserved for a later date.

The judge had refused repeated requests from journalists to be able to attend the hearing. Reporters from six newspapers spent the day challenging that ruling and will mount a further challenge for the judgment, and any further hearings, to be heard in public. Yesterday Berkoff, 63, did not attend the hearing, but his alleged victim, an actor and writer from west London who cannot be named for legal reasons, was present and at one point fled the courtroom in tears.

Should the judge rule that a default judgment should stand and award the woman damages, Berkoff will not need to stand trial. The default judgment was made after he did not respond to the claim because his lawyers considered it invalid. But if the judge rules that that judgment should be set aside and a full trial should go ahead, Berkoff will be expected to give evidence and be cross-examined.

Berkoff, who has denied the claim, has had no criminal charges brought against him over the alleged attack, which the woman claims took place in September 1994.

But civil courts require a lower standard of proof, with claimants needing to prove their case only on a "balance of probabilities" rather than "beyond reasonable doubt" as in criminal courts.

According to papers lodged with the court, the alleged victim is claiming damages for "assault and rape, including pain and suffering and loss of income and opportunities and out of pocket expenses". She also claims the alleged attack was aggravated by racial abuse.