A Los Angeles lawyer was allegedly fatally shot by his brother during an argument over Christmas weekend, according to cops and a close friend.

Krikor Kouyoumdjian, a 33-year-old civil rights attorney, was shot at his home in the North Hills area around 1:45 p.m. Saturday, police said.

Officers rushed to the home on the 9000 block of Noble Ave. after gunfire rang out.

An ambulance responded, but it was too late to save Kouyoumdjian, who died at the scene.

The successful lawyer was shot during a heated argument with his brother with whom he had a tumultuous relationship, his law partner Jonathan Haderlein told The Post.

“I have nothing nice to say about his brother or father,” said Haderlein. “He was an absolute victim.”

“There is no way he deserved this. All they ever did was take from him, and they should be ashamed of themselves,” Haderlein added.

Kouyoumdjian and Haderlein were not only law partners but friends since in the gifted program at Eagle Rock Elementary in the sixth grade.

“He was an extremely gifted young man,” Haderlein said.

They met again at North Hollywood High School where they both joined the debate team.

Debate became a defining passion for Kouyoumdjian, who later launched a debate program at the Center for Early Education in North Hollywood where he coached fifth and sixth graders for 14 years.

“Despite getting through law school, and starting his law career, he has always made that a priority that he would be there on Thursday afternoons to coach,” Haderlein said. “Of everything he did that was what he was the most proud of.”

Kouyoumdjian became the captain of the debate team at Loyola Marymount University, and was crowned champion of the Oxford debate tournament, despite the stresses at home.

Kouyoumdjian — whose Armenian surname translates roughly to “son of a jeweler” — spent years sleeping in a tent or his car while he poured everything he had into building a home.

“His father was a successful jeweler and was the victim of a terrible armed robbery in the ’90s,” said Haderlein. “Their family finances after that were always uncertain.”

That very home, which later became the site of his tragic murder, “was his pride and joy,” said Haderlein. “He transformed it from a wreck into the envy of our whole community in the best way. That is where everybody felt most comfortable and safe and where we could have the best times.”

At the time of his murder, Kouyoumdjian was living at the home with his fiancée and elderly father who he cared for.

Kouyoumdjian planned to get married on April 18, 2026. Instead, his fiancée watched him die and remains deeply traumatized, Haderlein said.

The couple first met through a Facebook group for law students who liked to play Dungeons & Dragons.

In 2023, Kouyoumdjian and Haderlein started their own law firm aimed at taking on ethical cases that could make a real difference. They recovered millions of dollars for their clients and most notably opened a class action lawsuit against Delta Airlines claiming its carbon neutral status is false and does not counteract the climate crisis, the Guardian reported.

“This year, it had been a really exciting time for the firm. We had a lot of excitement about getting to do law on moral issues that we cared about,” said Haderlein.

Days before he was killed, Kouyoumdjian held his annual Christmas party on Dec. 20, raffling off handcrafted items from his woodworking shop. Among his favorites this year were salt-and-pepper mills shaped like chess pieces.

It’s not clear what the fatal argument between the two brothers was about.

“It’s hard to put logic to these things. Gun violence between family members … it’s an unspeakable tragedy,” Haderlein said.

The motive and details of the shooting are still under investigation, the LAPD said. The suspect was arrested at the scene.