Costa Mesa-based Paul Frank Industries has settled its lawsuit with founder and designer, Paul Frank Sunich.

The lawsuit was settled last week but details of the settlement remain private, according to fashion news Web site, apparelnews.net.

The company had been in a suit with Sunich since he left in 2005.

"We're very happy that chapter of the business is behind us, and we look forward to building this brand into what we know it can be," Ryan Hauser told apparelnews.net.

Hauser and John Oswald now share ownership of Paul Frank Industries.

Hauser and Oswald will concentrate on brand building going forward, they said.

Part of their strategy is to discontinue the brand's Julius & Friends line, a product line for younger consumers with novelty characters.

Sunich was a major shareholder and sued his former partners seeking to dissolve the company. His two lawsuits claimed he was fired without reason and that he was being denied a share of the profits.

In 2005, the company issued a statement calling the suits "completely meritless and untrue" and that it always was "fair" to Sunich.

The company debuted in 1997, two years after Sunich started sewing wallets and other items for friends out of scrap vinyl from Heuser's garage.