Dorton v. Collins & Aikman Corp.

Dorton (plaintiff), doing business as Carpet Mart, ordered carpets by phone from Collins & Aikman (defendant) for three years, receiving sales acknowledgment forms with a small-print arbitration clause on the back before each shipment arrived, and accepted every shipment without objecting to the forms' terms. After Dorton sued for fraud and misrepresentation regarding carpet quality, Collins moved to compel arbitration under the clause, but the district court, relying on U.C.C. § 2-207(3), found no binding arbitration agreement had formed and denied a stay.