Fox

Martin L. Abrams, individually (Abrams), and Martin L. Abrams, a law corporation (appellant), appeal from a judgment in favor of respondents Harry D. Fox, James Gibson, E. Clarke Moseley and Fox & Gibson, a law corporation. These consolidated actions arise from the bitter breakup of the parties’ law practice.

In 1976 the parties were practicing law together in El Monte as Abrams, Fox, Gibson & O’Rourke, a law corporation (AFGO). The shareholders had a written agreement referred to at trial as the “Buy-Sell Agreement. ”

Relations between the parties broke down, and on May 6, 1976, Fox resigned from the firm. On June 1, 1976, Gibson also resigned and joined Fox in the practice of law a few blocks away. Moseley was then elevated to shareholder and on July 14, 1976, he entered a similar buy-sell agreement with Abrams, but on July 19 Moseley resigned and thereafter joined practice with Fox and Gibson, under the name of Fox & Gibson, a law corporation.

Prior to the resignations, respondents had been actively working on a number of AFGO’s pending cases, mostly personal injury and wrongful death. After the resignations, 70 of the clients executed substitutions of attorney,…