Safarian

INTRODUCTION

A jury found that defendant and appellant Elsagav Shaham, M.D. (Shaham) and defendants Harry Govgassian (Govgassian), Alisa Agadjanian (Agadjanian), and Silka Enterprises Inc., doing business as Salud Family Medical Clinic (Silka/Salud) conspired to defraud plaintiffs and respondents Rose Safarian (Safarian) and her husband Armen Sanamyan (Sanamyan) (plaintiffs) in connection with plaintiffs’ investment in a medical clinic. The jury awarded plaintiffs compensatory and punitive damages. On appeal, Shaham1 contends that the trial court improperly and prejudicially instructed the jury on conspiracy to commit fraud because plaintiffs’ second amended complaint did not allege that he participated in a conspiracy to commit fraud, the evidence did not support such an instruction, and the instruction misstated the law; sufficient evidence did not support his inclusion on the conspiracy to commit fraud special verdict form; the trial court erroneously admitted evidence; Govgassian’s, Agadjanian’s, and plaintiffs’ perjured testimony denied him a fair trial and caused him to suffer an excessive damages award; his counsel’s joint representation of Govgassian and Agadjanian…