NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Long-distance carrier MCI soon may face civil lawsuits alleging tax fraud, a published report said Friday.

The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, said the first of the suits, which is being prepared by West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw, may be filed within days, while at least one other state suit is expected by the middle of next month.

The suits allege that MCI, formerly known as Worldcom Inc., used a complicated setup to avoid hundreds of millions of dollars in state taxes in the three years after its 1998 acquisition of MCI Communications Corp.

The new lawsuits would be another blow to MCI, the report said. On Wednesday, criminal indictments were filed against it and several of its former executives by Oklahoma prosecutors. (For more on the charges click here.)

The company has been struggling to emerge from the long shadow cast by an $11 billion accounting fraud, the largest in U.S. history, the Journal said, and recently agreed to a $750 million settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Despite the latest roadblocks, MCI said it is proceeding with plans to emerge from Chapter 11 protection. A confirmation hearing on the company's reorganization plan is scheduled to begin Sept. 8.

MCI said it is cooperating with the state and federal probes but has not yet been contacted by any state officials over the tax issues, the Journal said, adding that the company's tax strategies were wholly legal.

"We file our state tax returns appropriately and in accordance with tax-planning strategies that are based on commonly used and accepted standards," MCI spokeswoman Claire Hassett told the paper.

The three potential tax-related lawsuits are in addition to a civil suit filed by Oregon's attorney general last week against MCI and underwriters including Salomon Smith Barney (recently renamed Citigroup Global Markets). The suit seeks to recoup $24 million the state lost on WorldCom bonds, the report said.