Severalcenturiesago,thefivenationsthatwouldbecometheHaudenosaunee--Mohawk,Oneida,Onondaga,Cayuga,andSeneca--werelockedingenerations-longcyclesofbloodshed.WhentheyestablishedKayanerenk籀wa,theGreatLawofPeace,theynotonlyresolvedintractableconflicts,butalsoshapedasystemoflawandgovernmentthatwouldmaintainpeaceforgenerationstocome.ThislawremainsinplacetodayinHaudenosauneecommunities:anIndigenouslegalsystem,distinctive,complex,andprincipled.Itisnotonlyasurvivor,butaviablealternativetoEuro-Americansystemsoflaw.Withitsemphasisonlastingrelationships,respectforthenaturalworld,buildingconsensus,andonmakingandmaintainingpeace,itstandsincontrasttolegalsystemsbasedonproperty,resourceexploitation,andmajorityrule.AlthoughKayanerenk籀wahasbeenstudiedbyanthropologists,linguists,andhistorians,ithasnotbeenthesubjectoflegalscholarship.Therearefewtextstowhichjudges,lawyers,researchers,oracademicsmayreferforanyunderstandingofspecificIndigenouslegalsystems.FollowingtheUnitedNationsDeclarationontheRightsofIndigenousPeoples,andagrowingemphasisonreconciliation,Indigenouslegalsystemsareincreasinglyrelevanttotheevolutionoflawandsociety.InKayanerenk籀wa:TheGreatLawofPeaceKayanesenhPaulWilliams,counseltoIndigenousnationsforfortyyears,withalawpracticebasedintheGrandRiverTerritoryoftheSixNations,bringsthesumofhisexperienceandexpertisetothisanalysisofKayanerenk籀waasaliving,principledlegalsystem.Indoingso,heputsapowerfultoolinthehandsofIndigenousandsettlercommunities.
