In the first hearing of the lawsuit regarding the exclusive contract dispute between the girl group NewJeans and its agency ADOR, NewJeans stated, “We have no intention of reaching an agreement with ADOR.” Conversely, ADOR noted, “We hope to reach an agreement.”
In the lawsuit for the confirmation of the validity of the exclusive contract conducted by the 41st Civil Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Director General Jeong Hoe-il) on the 3rd, NewJeans made this statement. On this day, the members of NewJeans did not appear in court, and only the legal representatives attended the trial.
NewJeans claimed, “With the ouster of former representative Min Hee-jin and the replacement of the management team following the orders of HYBE, ADOR has effectively become a different entity from before. Therefore, the trust that was built between ADOR and NewJeans cannot be maintained.”
In response, ADOR asserted, “Former representative Min did not get ousted but left of her own accord,” and “While it is indisputable that Min contributed to the existence of NewJeans today, it is unreasonable to say that NewJeans cannot exist without Min.”
Previously, the court granted ADOR's request for a preliminary injunction against NewJeans' five members to maintain agency status and prohibit the signing of advertising contracts. The court determined that it was not sufficiently proven that ADOR had violated significant obligations under its exclusive contract with NewJeans or that this had irreparably damaged the mutual trust between them.
According to the court's ruling, NewJeans will be unable to engage in independent activities without prior approval or consent from ADOR until the first instance ruling of the main lawsuit is issued. As a result, NewJeans also stated, “We have decided to comply with the court's decision and cease all activities.”