THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
An eight-year old quest by the Department of Law at the Kerala University for a much revered reference book has come to an end with largesse from an unlikely source.
Since the launch of a specialisation in intellectual property in 2014, the department has been knocking on many doors for financial assistance to procure the 54-volume ‘Chisum on Patents’, the most cited law treatise authored by Donald S. Chisum that provides analysis of topics involving patent law doctrines, rules and case law.
That the book costs nearly $16,000 (approximately ₹12 lakh) remained an impediment for the department which found it difficult to source funds more than the annual grant of ₹4 lakh it receives to procure books for its library.
Having exhausted most options including petitioning people’s representatives and corporate law firms, Sindhu Thulaseedharan, the head of the department, wrote to the Attorney General K.K. Venugopal on March 3. In her letter, she also elaborated on the inadequate funds that were available at the department’s disposal to purchase the book.
Three weeks later, Mr. Venugopal replied with a briefly-worded letter to inform her that he had placed an order for the books that would be delivered to the department. He also expressed hope that the commentary would be put to good use by the students.
An elated Dr. Thulaseedharan is confident the volumes will become a significant asset to its collection of legal references and codes. The books will be maintained as a tribute to the Attorney-General’s father, the late legal luminary Barrister M.K. Nambyar.
