The Disputing Process: An Ethnographic Study of a Homeowners Association

This article is based on a year-long fieldwork in Florida. It examines an institutionalised structure involving the common property managed by a homeowners association where dispute resolution mechanisms are in demand. The ethnographic case materials describe a legend of the resident manager, a legal battle, over the board election, recurrent problems with the limited commons, and mentalities of volunteers. The field research reveals the embedded disharmonies of and ongoing disputes over the management of the commons as viewed from a perspective of legal anthropology.