The putative class action lawsuit alleges multiple Toyota entities hid defects with heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems in its 2012-2017 Camrys and Hybrid Camrys. Photo: rmcarvalhobsb/Shutterstock.com.

A group of plaintiff attorneys are gearing for the next stage of litigation in a putative class action lawsuit against Toyota Motor Corp. and a group of affiliates in federal court.

Half of their original claims survived a motion to dismiss before U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno in the Southern District of Florida against defendants that included Plano, Texas-based Toyota Motor Sales USA Inc., Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America Inc. and Southeast Toyota Distributors LLC.

The lawsuit will proceed, with allegations the car companies concealed defects in 2012 to 2017 Toyota Camrys and Camry Hybrids. Four claims survived amid allegations Toyota concealed problems with heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems in millions of cars that it marketed, leased and sold. Instead of removing humidity and water, the systems allegedly released foul and toxic odors toward passengers, exposing them to dangerous contaminants, including mold.

Moreno found the plaintiffs adequately alleged counts of mail and wire fraud under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, as they unearthed multiple consumer complaints filed since the 1990s that could show the defendants were quietly aware of the issue.

The complaint also claims a Toyota technical services bulletin said the odors were unavoidable and "naturally occurring from the HVAC system and/or related environmental factors," according to Moreno's ruling.

Alleged violations of Florida's Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and the Texas Consumer Protection Act also survived.

The defendants have until Nov. 15 to answer the complaint.

Meanwhile, Moreno struck four allegations, which fell under fraud, fraudulent concealment and warranty claims.

The judge found the fraud and fraudulent concealment counts were barred by Florida's economic loss rule, which prohibits a tort action if the only damages suffered are economic losses. As for the breach-of-implied-warranty claims, Moreno noted that Florida courts have dismissed similar allegations "time and again," when the customer didn't buy a product directly from the defendant. The order also resolved two motions to dismiss from different parties.

Named plaintiffs Javier Cardenas and Kurt Kirton claim to have unwittingly bought new Toyota Camrys with the alleged defect from South Florida and Tennessee dealerships. They assert the defendants knew about the flaws, but never said anything.

David J. DePiano and Robert Sacks of Shapiro, Blasi, Wasserman & Hermann in Boca Raton are defending Southeast Toyota Distributors, while Miami lawyers Brian Ercole and Melissa Coates of Morgan Lewis represent the remaining defendants. They deferred comment to their client.

Toyota spokesman Eric Booth said in an emailed statement: "We are gratified the court dismissed a number of plaintiff's claims at this juncture. We continue to stand firmly behind the integrity and performance of our HVAC systems, and will continue to vigorously defend ourselves against the remaining claims."

Plaintiffs attorneys in Florida, California and Philadelphia are handling the case. In Miami, Podhurst Orseck attorneys Peter Prieto, Alissa Del Riego, John Gravante III and Matthew Weinshall did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Podhurst Orseck also serves as a leader for two dozen law firms in multidistrict litigation against car manufacturers over Takata air bag defects, after the largest automotive recall in U.S. history. Prieto is also the sole Florida lawyer out of 100 on the plaintiffs' executive committee in multidistrict litigation over General Motors ignition switches.

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