RETAILING

Artist Lawsuit Settled: Martin Lawrence Limited Editions Inc., a Van Nuys operator of shopping mall art galleries, and popular artist Hiromichi Yamagata said they settled their year-old legal dispute. Martin Lawrence, which sued Yamagata last February for breach of contract, and Yamagata, who later countersued, said their lawsuits will be dismissed and their relationship will end with no “net� amount of money changing hands, but declined to elaborate. The gallery operator will also give up the rights to certain Yamagata artwork and will return several of the artist’s works to him. Before the dispute, Yamagata accounted for about 42% of Martin Lawrence’s sales.