On January 15 KST, the 31st Civil Division of the Seoul Central District Court convened for the final hearing in the ongoing legal dispute between HYBE Labels and former ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin over the inefficacy of their shareholder contract. Min Hee Jin did not attend the final hearing in-person, and both sides were represented by their legal teams.
On this day, HYBE Labels continued to accuse Min Hee Jin of attempting to extract ADOR and NewJeans from HYBE. Emphasizing that the agency invested approximately 21 billion KRW (~ 14 million USD) in the launch of NewJeans, HYBE's side claimed, "The defendant sought ways to seize ADOR for herself and escape from HYBE with NewJeans in tow. The court recognized this as fact last May when it ruled that the girl group's exclusive contract with HYBE remained valid."
HYBE then asserted, "Based on KakaoTalk conversations, written documents, and additional evidence presented, the defendant's intentions are clear. The defendant planned to manipulate the media and pressure HYBE into selling ADOR shares, setting the stage so that NewJeans would have fabricated reasons to terminate their exclusive contracts. The conversations exchanged on KakaoTalk did not stop at mere chatter or speculation. The defendant sought the advice of legal experts and industry insiders in their plans. They also met with the parents of the NewJeans members and potential investors, proposing deals."
Finally, HYBE stated, "Significantly, the items that NewJeans listed as reasons for the termination of their contracts were all derived from claims made by the defendant against HYBE in 2024 as a part of their media play. These so-called reasons were all found to be baseless by the court. The purpose of the shareholder contract between HYBE and the defendant is ADOR's collaborative growth and advancement. Considering that the defendant broke this agreement of trust, any further cooperation is not an option."
Meanwhile, HYBE terminated the shareholder contract between the agency and Min Hee Jin in July of 2024. 2 months later, Min Hee Jin was dismissed as the CEO of ADOR. In November of the same year, Min Hee Jin declared that she would exercise her put option of approximately 26 billion KRW after her dismissal from ADOR. HYBE then insisted that the put options were invalid as the shareholder contract was already terminated.
In October of 2025, the court ruled that the exclusive contract between NewJeans and ADOR remained valid. Without filing an appeal, all 5 members of NewJeans expressed their intentions of returning to ADOR to resume their group activities. However, in December of the same year, ADOR unilaterally terminated the exclusive contract of member Danielle, and proceeded to file a lawsuit against Danielle, her family member, and Min Hee Jin for damages amounting to approximately 43 billion KRW (~ 29 million USD).
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