NewJeans Members Part Ways Over Contracts... Danielle Exits, Hanni and Haerin Remain with ADOR

The separation of contracts among NewJeans’ members has created uncertainty regarding the group’s future activities. Different decisions were made by each member during the legal dispute with their agency, ADOR.

ADOR announced in January that members Hanni and Haerin had decided to continue their activities together with the agency. In contrast, Danielle’s contract was terminated, while the final decisions for Minzy and Minhee have not yet been disclosed.

Former ADOR representative Minhee-jin previously stated that “NewJeans should remain as a complete group of five members.” However, this opinion was not reflected in the court’s ruling. This situation traces back to a dispute between HYBE and former representative Minhee-jin in July 2024. HYBE terminated the shareholder agreement, arguing that Minhee-jin attempted to privatize ADOR and NewJeans, and removed her from her position as ADOR’s representative in August of the same year.

During the litigation, the court emphasized the importance of written contracts. In a copyright infringement lawsuit filed by ADOR against NewJeans’ music video director Shin Woo-seok and his agency, Dolgorae Yu-gwedaan, the court recognized the validity of written contracts over oral agreements and ordered Dolgorae Yu-gwedaan to pay 1 billion won in compensation.

The lawsuit confirming the termination of the shareholder agreement between HYBE and former representative Minhee-jin took place on January 15 at the Seoul Central District Court. Minhee-jin claims the right to exercise a put option worth 26 billion won following the contract termination, but HYBE argues that the put option is invalid due to the termination of the shareholder agreement.

On January 12, Danielle stated in live streams on her personal Instagram and YouTube that she “strived to stay together until the end” and added that “NewJeans will always be in my heart, and this is not the end but a beginning.”