Former ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin has won her legal dispute with HYBE over a 26 billion KRW (approximately 20 million USD) put option case, while controversy surrounding alleged similarities between NewJeans and ILLIT has resurfaced following the court’s ruling.
On February 12, the Seoul Central District Court’s Civil Division 31 ruled in favor of Min in her stock sale payment lawsuit against HYBE, determining that her exercise of the put option was valid and ordering HYBE to pay approximately 25.5 billion KRW (about 19.6 million USD).
The court notably found that Min’s allegations regarding ILLIT copying NewJeans and her concerns about alleged “album pushing” did not constitute a serious breach of contract. HYBE had previously argued that Min spread false information in an attempt to purchase ADOR shares at a lower price.
During earlier injunction hearings related to voting rights at the Seoul Central District Court, Min’s side claimed that a HYBE employee reported that ILLIT’s creative director had requested NewJeans’ planning materials from the early stages of ILLIT’s development, and that ILLIT’s proposal was identical to NewJeans’ concept plan.
According to Min’s legal team, the informant stated that they provided the materials at the request of ILLIT’s creative director but “never imagined they would recreate it exactly,” adding that they felt uncomfortable with Belift Lab’s claim that the plagiarism allegations were false.
ILLIT, produced by HYBE chairman Bang Si Hyuk, had faced controversy over similarities with NewJeans even before their debut. Allegations of plagiarism were raised across multiple aspects, including concept, styling, and choreography. In response, Belift Lab released a YouTube video titled 'Belift Lab’s Position on the Plagiarism Claims,' denying the accusations.
According to a February 12 report by Star News, the court stated regarding the plagiarism issue that “based on reports examining ILLIT’s performance shortly after debut, there were aspects that could be judged as similar to NewJeans.” The court also noted that petitions submitted by NewJeans’ parents expressing concerns about similarities could not be considered a significant misunderstanding of facts.
The court further determined that Belift Lab failed to present sufficient additional evidence to support its claim that the groups were not similar, concluding that the controversy could not be considered fully resolved.
It also ruled that raising concerns about ILLIT copying NewJeans did not constitute a serious violation of duty. The court stated that Min Hee Jin’s actions, as ADOR’s CEO at the time, fell within the scope of management decisions made to protect the value of NewJeans and were carried out in the company’s interest.
The ruling marks a significant development in the ongoing dispute between Min Hee Jin and HYBE, while also bringing renewed attention to the debate over similarities between ILLIT and NewJeans.
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