On April 4, 2012, plaintiff Edik Abgaryan, 52, underwent a dental procedure, during which Dr. Kyork Dabbagh, a dentist in Los Angeles, extracted the upper teeth and placed seven implants. Abgaryan first presented to Dabbagh on March 27, 2012, seeking to have a fixed prosthesis for his upper jaw. The initial procedure was performed approximately one week later, during which Dabbagh placed the implants in the upper jaw. Abgaryan claimed the implants were useless, as they would not allow for either a fixed or removable prosthesis. Abgaryan sued Dabbagh, who was initially erroneously sued as Dabbagh Kevork. Abgaryan alleged that Dabbagh negligently placed the implants and that Dabbagh’s actions constituted dental malpractice. The matter proceeded to a binding arbitration. Abgaryan claimed that Dabbagh failed to have a coherent treatment plan and failed to make use of a CT scan that was taken prior to the surgery. He claimed that as a result, Dabbagh placed the implants too close together and at unacceptable angles so that they could not accommodate a fixed prosthesis. Abgaryan also claimed the implants were placed without consideration of where they could support the aesthetics and function of the prosthesis. Dabbagh claimed that his care and treatment of Abgaryan was within the standard of care and that he did not cause Abgaryan any injury or damage. He also claimed that Abgaryan was unreasonable and abandoned the treatment plan before the planned work could be completed., At the time of the arbitration, Abgaryan still had the implants in his upper jaw, and he did not have a prosthesis during the pendency of the litigation. Thus, he had no teeth to chew. Abgaryan claimed that he would have to have the implants surgically removed. Abgaryan sought recovery of damages for the one year’s time the process would take to remove the implants and have new ones placed so that he could have a fixed prosthesis. He also sought recovery of damages for his emotional distress. Defense counsel asserted that Abgaryan failed to mitigate his damages.