Leveraging Entrust Entelligence Messaging Server, Charles Russell is now able to provide its customers full encryption for e-mails containing sensitive data. Further, those clients can benefit from e-mail encryption regardless of their own capabilities. To streamline protocol, the firm will place e-mail encryption policy management in the hands of the organization's IT department, freeing lawyers from the burden of encrypting confidential information during electronic communication.

"In an industry that is constantly viewing, storing and managing extremely sensitive client information, the ability to seamlessly encrypt e-mails will increase efficiency and help guarantee compliance with regulatory mandates," said Charles Russell IT Director Jon Gould. "Not only did Entrust's e-mail encryption solution solve our security requirements, but their reputation and expertise in this field only confirmed our decision."

A testament to Entrust's heritage, Charles Russell was attracted to the standards-based credential management technology within Entrust Entelligence Messaging Server. The solution automates harvesting of certificate credentials, and boundary deployment eliminates lawyer intervention, one of the initial requirements of the firm. As a standards-based credential management solution, Entrust Entelligence Messaging Server delivers a technology that can evolve as the practice's security goals change over time.

"For an organization whose business revolves entirely around sensitive or private information, seamless e-mail encryption is a much-needed asset," said Entrust Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Bill Conner. "A key component of a strategic layered security approach, Entrust Entelligence Messaging Server will afford Charles Russell clients, and its workforce, an invaluable peace of mind. And, as security goals evolve, more solutions can be introduced to help realize the objective of a comprehensive layered security model."

Entrust Entelligence Messaging Server is an e-mail security solution that makes it easier to communicate securely with external business partners, customers and clients. Part of Entrust's Information Protection Platform, the solution is shipped as a hardware appliance and delivers standards-based e-mail encryption capabilities in a comprehensive solution. In addition, it's easy to deploy and maintain for organizations that communicate sensitive or regulated information -- both inside and outside their organization -- via e-mail.

U.K.-based Charles Russell is a top-50, full-service legal practice with offices in London, Guildford, Cheltenham, Cambridge, Oxford and Geneva. The firm boasts the expertise and size to advise on complex, cross-border transactions and to manage the input of international networks of major law firms. The organization's clients range from international, FTSE and AIM- listed businesses to governments, not-for-profit bodies, private individuals, trustees and intermediaries.

About Entrust

Entrust secures digital identities and information for consumers, enterprises and governments in 1,650 organizations spanning 60 countries. Leveraging a layered security approach to address growing risks, Entrust solutions help secure the most common digital identity and information protection pain points in an organization. These include SSL, authentication, fraud detection, shared data protection and e-mail security. For information, call 888-690-2424, e-mail entrust@entrust.com or visit http://www.entrust.com.

Entrust is a registered trademark of Entrust, Inc. in the United States and certain other countries. In Canada, Entrust is a registered trademark of Entrust Limited. All Entrust product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of Entrust, Inc. or Entrust Limited. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

In the petition, the firm said it's representing three people severely injured in the Aug. 1 collapse and the families of two people who died in the disaster. It did not identify the victims, and attorney James Schwebel declined to reveal them.

A hearing on the petition was scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday before U.S. District Judge Patrick J. Schiltz in St. Paul.

"We are in the very preliminary stage on this," Schwebel said. "We've been retained by several families. We've been contacted by many others. They're obviously wanting to make sure there is some accountability for whoever is culpable for this disaster, and we need to have experts to answer many of these questions for us."

Copies of the petition were served on the offices of the U.S. attorney for Minnesota, the Minneapolis city attorney and the state attorney general because federal, city and state and city agencies are involved in the collapse investigation. Spokespeople for those offices did not immediately return phone calls Tuesday.

The petition said the firm had hired two experts to help it pursue wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits on behalf of its clients, and that they had special training and experience that would "assist a jury in determining negligence and causation issues."

Time is of the essence because the impending dismantling of the wreckage "will forever make it impossible to perform an inspection on the site," the petition said.

Nine people were confirmed dead and four were still missing as of Tuesday, while about 100 people were injured in the collapse.

Wrongful death lawsuits must be filed in three years, but the deadline for negligence suits is longer, Schwebel said.

The state's liability is limited to $1 million, but any lawsuits could also target private contractors and their insurers.

Bruce Johnson, the Noels' current attorney, told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel that his clients were "very disappointed."

"We were surprised by the ruling, and we believe it was incorrect," Johnson said to the newspaper.

A telephone message left by The Associated Press at Schlesinger's office and with the attorney representing the firm, Bruce Rogow, was not immediately returned after hours Thursday.

Noel was left paralyzed from the waist down at 6 months old following surgery at a state clinic in 1999. Now 19, she suffers from spina bifida, a congenital defect in which the spinal column fails to close properly.

A Broward jury awarded $8.5 million to the Noels, but state law limits such payments to $200,000 without legislative approval. Lawmakers finally passed the claims bill this year after several failed attempts.

Schlesinger filed a lien asking for more money than the legislation allocated to the firm.

Last month, Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink argued the Circuit Court in Fort Lauderdale lacks jurisdiction on the case. A telephone message and an e-mail left after hours by AP for Sink was not immediately returned.

Noel and her family lived in Broward County when the surgery took place but have since moved to Brevard County, where she is attending college.

Earlier this year, Roe told lawyers at a Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association conference that "there will be negative campaigns against judges in 2008. That is reality."

Lathrop simply said that it no longer needed the space it leased to Roe and that it had given its landlord and Roe notice of its intent to terminate the lease.

Roe last week said his lease runs until March or April and he'd been dealing directly with the building's owner, an out-of-town outfit. He said he originally signed a two-year lease.

Roe said he hopes to remain in the space by negotiating directly with the landlord but plans to remain there in any event until the sublease expires.

The space houses nine employees, according to Roe, who has his own 20- by 25-foot glassed-in corner office. He said he had two other offices in the area but declined to disclose their locations.

Blunt's sister, Amy Blunt, works in Lathrop's government relations department. Like other large and influential law firms, Lathrop boasts both heavyweight Democrats and Republicans on its roster, including Jack Craft (Republican) and Harold Fridkin (Democrat) in its Kansas City office.

KSU case is 'moot'

A constitutional challenge to the removal in 2004 of the adviser to Kansas State University's newspaper was ruled moot last week by a federal court.

Katie Lane, the former editor in chief of the Collegian, and Sarah Rice, its former managing editor, sued over the removal of Ron Johnson as the paper's adviser, supposedly because of the subpar quality of the newspaper's news coverage.

The move occurred after a controversy erupted on campus over the extent of minority news coverage in the newspaper and its failure to cover the Big XII Conference on Black Student Government held in Manhattan in 2004. Lane and Rice claimed that Johnson's removal was triggered by the controversy and chilled the exercise of their First Amendment rights.

The trial court dismissed the case, finding that the First Amendment claim failed because the decision to remove Johnson was based on the quality of the Collegian, not its content. On appeal, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the trial court's decision, ruling that because Lane and Rice have since graduated, their claims were moot.

An exception to the mootness doctrine — where there's a reasonable expectation that the same complaining parties will be subjected to the same actions again — was found inapplicable.

"Because only KSU students serve as editors of the Collegian, there is no reasonable expectation that Lane and Rice will be subjected, post-graduation, to censorship by defendants in connection with this newspaper," the court stated.