http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Classaction-lawsuits-could-apf-739599731.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=2&asset=&ccode=

MIAMI (AP) -- Toyota

owners claiming that massive safety recalls are causing the value of their vehicles to plummet have filed at least 89 class-action lawsuits that could cost the Japanese auto giant $3 billion or more, according to an Associated Press review of cases, legal precedent and interviews with experts.

Those estimates do not include potential payouts for wrongful death and injury lawsuits, which could reach in the tens of millions each. Still, the sheer volume of cases involving U.S. Toyota

owners claiming lost value -- 6 million or more -- could prove far more costly, adding up to losses in the billions for the automaker.

Such class-action lawsuits "are more scary for Toyota

than the cases where people actually got injured," said Tom Baker, a University of Pennsylvania law professor. "A super-big injury case would be $20 million. But you could have millions of individual car owners who could (each) be owed $1,000. If I were Toyota, I'd be more worried about those cases."

As Toyota

continues to deal with the recalls and wavering public confidence in its vehicle safety, its biggest financial fight may be in the courtroom. A key decision could come at a March 25 hearing in San Diego, where a panel of federal judges will consider whether to consolidate the mushrooming cases into a single jurisdiction.

After that, a judge will decide whether all claims filed by Toyota

owners nationwide can be combined in a single legal action -- known as "certifying a class" -- and whether the claims have enough merit to move toward either trial or settlement.