NewJeans vs. ADOR Exclusive Contract Dispute Resolution Concluded... Mediation Attempt Scheduled for August

The exclusive contract dispute between the girl group NewJeans and their agency ADOR continues through legal proceedings. On the 24th, Civil Agreement Division 41 of the Seoul Central District Court held the third hearing in the lawsuit filed by ADOR to confirm the validity of the exclusive contracts against all five members of NewJeans. The two sides engaged in fierce confrontation over whether the conditions for terminating the contracts had been met. ADOR argued that the core issue of the dispute stemmed from NewJeans changing their loyalty from Trainees to successful celebrities. An ADOR representative claimed, “HYBE invested 21 billion won in full support of NewJeans, and the group became global stars, receiving settlement payments of over 5 billion won each. The important obligations under the exclusive contract (providing entertainment opportunities and settling earnings) were fulfilled.” The representative added, “The term ‘trust relationship’ refers to that between business partners, and there is no situation where such a relationship would be destroyed.” On the other hand, NewJeans cited changes in the agency’s management structure as the key reason for terminating the contracts. NewJeans stated, “After ADOR removed representative Minhee Jin under the pretext of ‘seizing control,’ and replaced him with HYBE executives, ADOR — the agency the members trusted and relied on when signing the exclusive contracts — no longer exists.” A NewJeans representative emphasized, “Supreme Court precedents state that the breakdown of the trust relationship itself constitutes a valid reason for termination. The defendants not only lost trust in the plaintiffs during the litigation process but also fear them.” The representative further argued that forcing contract compliance violates personal rights. After hearing both sides, the court set August 14th as a private mediation date to conduct direct negotiations. The court also requested the presence of NewJeans members during the mediation. If the parties fail to reach an agreement, a judgment will be delivered at 9:50 a.m. on October 30th.