'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
On March 8, 2025, Dispatch reported that NewJeans (NJZ) was ordered by the 50th Civil Agreement Division of the Seoul Central District Court judge to reorganize and resubmit their list of reasons for contract termination. Chief Judge Kim Sang-hoon stated that the court would conclude the injunction hearing with a final verdict by March 14.
ADOR filed an injunction with the Seoul Central District Court to prevent the members from engaging in independent activities. This included signing advertising contracts amidst an ongoing lawsuit.
On March 7, the first hearing of ADOR's injunction against the girl group took place. Each party was given 40 minutes to present their case. NewJeans presented 93 PowerPoint slides, with more than 13 additional reasons why they terminated their contract with the HYBE subsidiary label, ADOR.
Trending
In response, HYBE presented 229 PowerPoint slides in 10 minutes, and spent 30 minutes refuting the girl group's claims. Dispatch reported that the group spent 36 minutes presenting their argument and became emotional in the last four minutes, pleading with the court to set them free from ADOR.
Key highlights from ADOR vs. NewJeans' first injunction hearing
NewJeans, aka NJZ members, tearfully testified at the end of the injunction hearing about experiencing workplace harassment and bullying within the agency, highlighting the disrespect and poor treatment from company higher-ups, including being ignored and feeling unprotected.
ADOR's legal representatives argued that the contracts with NewJeans remain valid and that the group's unilateral termination was unjustified. They emphasized that any independent activities by the members could lead to confusion and potential harm to third parties, underscoring the necessity of the injunction.
Here are the key highlights:
Hanni allegedly ignored by ILLIT
NewJeans, who rebranded themselves as NJZ on February 7, 2025, claimed that ILLIT (another HYBE-affiliated girl group) didn't greet Hanni while passing by the building corridors. ADOR rebutted, citing that Hanni's statement was misconstrued by Min Hee-jin (former ADOR CEO) to create misunderstanding among company affiliates.
Additionally, ADOR submitted CCTV footage showing all ILLIT members bowing 90 degrees to Hanni as she passed by. NJZ claimed that HYBE allegedly wanted to drop them and replace them with ILLIT and LE SSERAFIM.
HYBE and ADOR accused of downplaying NJZ's success
The Ditto group then argued in court that HYBE's PR team contacted foreign journalists and downplayed the group's Japan sales of 1.02 million album units.
ADOR clarified that the PR personnel "corrected" the information that NewJeans sold 1.02 million album units "in Japan and other countries," to avoid violating the Capital Markets Act.
HYBE accused of planning to drop NJZ
ADOR refuted the claim, stating that the "HYBE Internal Document" prepared by a former Weverse executive carried no facts and was based on a singular person's personal views.
The label stressed that no such statement was made regarding "dropping NewJeans," although the author of the document highlighted that NewJeans shouldn't be compared to Starship Entertainment's girl group IVE.
ADOR also stressed that Min Hee-jin edited the required parts from the documents and deleted the context to present to the court. The label also submitted the original receipts from the document and the conversation to support their claims.
ILLIT's concept document plagiarised from NJZ
NJZ's representative argued that HYBE subsidiary Belift Lab's group, ILLIT's concept document was a copy-paste of NewJeans, aka NJZ. The document was originally created by Min Hee-jin, who debuted NJZ in 2022.
ADOR refuted the claims that while the template may look similar, ILLIT's concept and brand core values are different from NJZ. They stressed that while debuting a new group, similarities with existing groups often arise in the K-pop business.
"Whenever a new group appears, issues of similarity and benchmarking often arise. Should we call all of them plagiarism of NewJeans?" ADOR said.
NewJeans' trainee video released by HYBE without consent
NJZ claimed that either HYBE or its subsidiary label, Source Music (home of LE SSERAFIM), released the trainee video of group members Minji, Danielle, and more without their consent.
It is important to note that before signing with ADOR, all NewJeans members were under Source Music. Min Hee-jin had previously claimed that Source Music wanted to establish that she took the girls from the label to debut as ADOR group.
ADOR refuted the claims, stating that HYBE tried to protect the girl group and ordered Dispatch to delete the trainee videos.
ADOR & HYBE accused of blocking Dolphin Kidnapping Group
NJZ argued that the Dolphin Kidnapping Group worked on producing and directing several of the group's music videos, like Ditto and ETA, among others. They claimed that ADOR terminated the Dolphin Kidnapping Group contract with NJZ, against the girl group's wishes,
In response, ADOR stressed that according to Article 10, Section 2 of the ADOR-Dolphin Kidnapping Group service consignment contract, any filmed content or post cannot be uploaded or shared outside of ADOR's official channels without written consent from the label.
ADOR stressed that the Dolphin Kidnapping Group shared all of NJZ's videos on their private channels, which was a breach of contract and violated YouTube's advertising policies as well.
ADOR questions NJZ about advertising contract breaches
Following NJZ's accusations, ADOR listed out how the girl group announced completing their schedule on the day of declaring contract termination on November 28, 2024.
ADOR stated that despite the group's claims in front of the media, they refused to complete ongoing schedules under the label. The group also bypassed ADOR and contacted advertisers to sign exclusive deals. The group attempted to keep the label out of the deals, which alarmed the advertisers.
NJZ did not refute the accusation.
Min Hee-jin tampered with NewJeans' activities for personal gain
ADOR claimed that former CEO Min Hee-jin orchestrated the unauthorized YouTube live of the girl group. In the now-deleted livestream, the girls demanded the reinstatement of Min Hee-jin as ADOR's CEO in September 2024. The label added that Min Hee-jin dragged the group into her public feud, and sent Hanni to the National Assembly Audit.
ADOR stressed that Min Hee-jin used NewJeans (NJZ) as a tool to get back control over the label and win against HYBE, jeopardizing the group's current activities and their future.
NewJeans' side did not present any rebuttal to these allegations.
After both sides presented their arguments, each NJZ member gave a final closing statement, echoing how much they wanted Min Hee-jin back as the CEO of ADOR or else they felt unsafe in the company.
The Seoul Central District Court asked the girl group to re-submit actual reasons for contract termination and more evidence against ADOR before March 14, 2025.
