The judge who is presiding over the nearly 100 federal lawsuits against Toyota, which are being consolidated, has set a May 13 hearing on the case, according to The Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304628704575186230332752408.html?mod=WSJ_auto_IndustryCollection
Federal Judge James Selna scheduled the initial hearing in the matter for his courtroom in Santa Ana, Calif. Dozens of attorneys for plaintiffs in the suits are expected to be in court for that session.
Some of the suits stem from deaths and injuries allegedly caused by the sudden acceleration of Toyota vehicles, while others seek compensation for the loss of value of their Toyotas because of the acceleration problems.
At this point, Selena has opted to consolidate the wrongful death and injury suits with the consumer suits, according to The Journal.
Lawyers are eagerly waiting to see who Selna will choose to lead the arguments in the cases against Toyota. The Journal estimated that anywhere from $200 million to $500 million in attorneys’ fees will be generated by the cases, and that only a few lawyers – the lead lawyers – will share in that money.
For the period leading up to the first hearing, Selna has picked three lawyers as temporary leads: Elizabeth Cabraser of San Francisco; Steve Berman of Seattle; and Marc Seltzer of Los Angeles.
The lead lawyer for Toyota is Cari Dawson.
Also this week, Toyota suspended sales of its 2010 Lexus GX 460 SUV in both the Unites States and other countries after Consumer Reports magazine deemed the vehicle unsafe.
Toyota said it would also do safety tests not only the GX 460, but all of its SUVs. And the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also said it would run its own safety tests of the GX 460. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304510004575185983714141448.html?mod=WSJ_auto_IndustryCollection
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/16/business/16toyota.html?ref=business
