Originally from Dispute Resolution Journal

TEXTILES—TIMELINESS—UCC § 2-725—SERVICE BY MAIL—NEW YORK

A demand for arbitration is not deemed made until received. Therefore, under UCC § 2-725, arbitration of certain of the contract claims was time-barred. Carolina Underwear bought fabrics from Springs Mills under forty-one separate contracts between April 1973 and April 1976, The last deliveries of these fabrics were received by ihe purchaser between April 23 and May 3, 1976. All of the textiles had been treated with TRIS, a flame retardant. TRIS was banned on April 8, 1977, as a possible carcinogen. Carolina Underwear, claiming damages, served demands for arbitration dated April 7, 198{) and September 4, 1980. Although the claims were characterized as "breach of contract, injuries to property, breach of warranty and tortious conduct," they were actually claims for contract damages. Therefore, the court agreed with Springs Mills' contention that the governing statute of limitations was four years from tender of delivery, as prescribed by § 2-725 of the Uniform Commercial Code, rather than the three-year limit applicable to tort actions prescribed by the New York Civil Practice Law and Rules § 214(4), which Carolina Underwear claimed began to run when TRIS was banned. The court thus held that claims for goods tendered for delivery before April 9, 1976, were not arbitrable. 

Springs Mills, Inc. V. Carolina Underwear Co., Inc., 448 N.Y,S.2d 10 (App. Div., 1st Dept. 1982).