Despite the anticipation that the legal system would be able to offer a civilized and institutionalized means in settling the infringement of homeowners' property and consumer rights, empirical evidence has instead indicated a decline in the employment of litigation in dispute resolution. This paper attempts to examine the complex interaction between the rule of law and homeowner activism in upholding their rights. Information on property related litigation was collected from online court rulings in Shanghai which is supplemented with in-depth interviews with homeowner activists who were involved in litigation. In this paper, the rule of law in China is analysed within a wider socio-political context of neighbourhood governance and the emerging civil society. Despite the inadequacy in the legal system in protecting homeowners' rights, empirical evidence has shown that homeowner activists have explored the legal system, not just as a means of redress but also to employ creatively as part of their action strategy in settling their problems outside the court.

雖然有人期待可透過法律制度，以文明和制度化的方法解決業主就物業和消費者權益被侵害的問題，實證證據卻指出人們正減少使用法律訴訟去解決爭議。本文嘗試審視法治和業主維權活動之間的復雜互動。本研究收集了上海法庭上載到網上的物業訴訟判詞，輔以涉及訴訟業主的深入訪談。本文由鄰裡治理和新興公民社會的宏觀社會政治角度，分析中國的法治狀況。即使法律制度不足以保障業主權益，實證證據顯示維權業主曾經探索過法律制度，他們不單視之為其中一種申訴方法，而且同時靈活地運用它，作為他們在法院以外解決爭議的行動策略的其中一環。

Mode of access: Internet.