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For the better part of the last decade, the plaintiffs’ bar has asserted digital dominance over the defense. In countless class action engagements, plaintiffs’ attorneys have outpaced the companies they target in search engine marketing and optimization (SEM and SEO), in the blogosphere, and on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

By remaining a full Internet-generation ahead in the online race to be found, the plaintiffs’ bar has recruited scores of class litigants and effectively shaped the narrative that defines outcomes in both the courtroom and the Court of Public Opinion. And by controlling the venues to which more Americans turn for information than any other, they have created an environment where even a resounding legal victory often isn’t enough to undo the reputational damage done during the course of litigation.

That said, it should be noted that many of today’s companies are less willing to cede the digital high ground than they have been in the past. But while Web-savvy remains the exception in Corporate America, it is fast becoming the norm in the plaintiffs’ community – and nowhere has this phenomenon been more apparent than in the online activity surrounding Toyota’s historic round of recalls.

As of this morning, a Google search for the term “Toyota recall” displays 10 paid advertisements. Toyota itself holds the top spot – and for that, it should be credited. The problem, however, is that plaintiffs firms account for five of the remaining nine. Search “Toyota class action” and the plaintiffs’ edge is even greater. Click on any of these ads and you’ll not only find myriad reasons to sue; you’ll also see that a free consultation is just another click away.

When it comes to organic (or non-paid) SEO, Toyota cedes the top spot in the Google Rankings to Parker Waichman Alonso LLP when searching “Toyota class action.” That’s significant because more sophisticated Web searchers often skip the paid results and turn straight to the sites that Google recognizes as having the greatest earned affinity. On the world’s most popular search engine, it seems the plaintiffs still have the upper hand.

In the growing world of Web video, Parker Waichman Alonso LLP is again leading the plaintiffs’ charge with a branded YouTube channel featuring numerous videos about the Toyota recalls. But, not to be shut out of this all-important messaging venue, Toyota maintains its own branded YouTube channel that is frequently populated with recall-based messages aimed at assuaging consumer fears and wining back a skeptical public.

In the blogosphere, Ledger & Associates, the Baumgartner Law Firm, and the Law Offices of James O. Cunningham all maintain blogs that have covered the Toyota recall and articulate their lawyers’ expertise in litigating such matters – and those are just the first three that a Google search returns. Again, Toyota has answered that challenge with its own blog, “Our Point of View.”  But with only one update since December 23, it’s likely that any influence the blog once held has now evaporated.

On Twitter, plaintiffs’ firm Arias Ozzello & Gignac LLP has a Toyota Recall presence that boasts more than 800 followers. Toyota has also established a Twitter channel in response to the recalls – but because it rarely highlights recall-related news in a venue where transparency defines credibility, there are questions as to its overall effect.

And finally, we come to Facebook. The “Defend Toyota” page on social networking’s most popular site is “liked” by nearly 2,000 individuals. While, that figure dwarfs the number of members of most Toyota class action groups, the page is again hindered by a lack of sustained activity. With no updates since April 23, one has to wonder about the staying power of one of Toyota’s most successful digital engagements to date.

In the grand scheme, Toyota stands head and shoulders above many of its counterparts when it comes to building a digital defense to the brand and legal liabilities that accompany class action lawsuits. But with much catching up to do if Toyota hopes to match the plaintiffs’ bar, that fact speaks volumes about Corporate America’s readiness to win the digital debate at times when losing simply isn’t an option.

Richard S. Levick, Esq. is President and CEO of Levick Strategic Communications, the nation's top crisis firm. He is also a contributing author to Bulletproof Blog. Connect with him @richardlevick.