Qusoma Library & Bookshop Property Law -Fancis Kariuki ,Smith Ouma and Raphael Ng'etich

The subject of property is broad and complex. The extensive body of laws, policies and regulations that inform property law are simplified in a clear, understandable and accessible way in this book, including the fascinating area of intellectual property (IP) law. As readers may know, property law as a whole has evolved rapidly in Kenya especially since the promulgation of the Constitution of Kenya 2010. The book which is just shy of 500 pages is organised in 14 chapters that take a holistic view of property including considerations of African conceptions of property.

IP is largely covered in chapter 5 of the book which considers forms of property. In the category of intangible property, the book discusses goodwill as property, electromagnetic spectrum as property before delving into the broad subject of IP rights. The book provides some of the key highlights of the various IP legislations in Kenya namely the Industrial Property Act, Copyright Act, Trade Marks Act, the Seeds and Plant Varieties Act and Anti-Counterfeit Act. The book also considers traditional knowledge (TK), traditional cultural expressions (TCEs) and genetic resources as a form of IP rights. The policy and legislative framework for TK and TCEs is presented in the book as well as the debate on whether TK and TCEs should be protected under existing IP rights regime or under a sui generis framework. This blogger was hoping to find some discussion of ‘image rights’/’personality’ as a category of intangible property but did not find anything.

All in all, the book is concise and well-written. It covers the full breadth of property law as it exists in Kenya today. Here’s to congratulate our colleagues for this wonderful achievement!