Report alleging Min Hee-jin left NJZ (NewJeans) behind to battle HYBE alone goes viral online

On March 25, 2025, a South Korean outlet, MediaUs, reported that Min Hee-jin, the former CEO of ADOR, had withdrawn from the legal dispute with HYBE much earlier. That left NewJeans to handle the battle on their own.

The article claims that what was initially a conflict between HYBE and Min Hee-jin has now shifted into a dispute between NewJeans and ADOR. In a post on X, the outlet claims:

"New Jeans' 'de-Hive' was triggered by the dispute between Min Hee-jin and Hive and is the final exit chosen by Min Hee-jin," MediaUS asserted (as translated by Google).

The shift reportedly happened after NewJeans' emergency YouTube live, during which the members publicly expressed their stance. Since then, the former ADOR CEO has allegedly stayed out of the spotlight while the members took charge of defending their position.

"The point at which the fight between Min Hee-jin and HYBE turned into 'New Jeans vs. Adore' was the emergency live broadcast of New Jeans mentioned earlier," MediaUs writes.

MediaUs' report links her absence to her removal as ADOR's CEO, adding:

"If Min Hee-jin, who was dismissed as the representative of Adore and became a third party, continues to direct New Jeans' actions as before, it could cause a controversy over 'tampering' by contacting singers whose contracts are still valid, and it would be disadvantageous in future legal disputes."

It continued:

"This is the background of New Jeans, who had always been active in the shadow of Min Hee-jin, suddenly being reborn as an 'independent idol'."

According to the media report, NewJeans took a different approach. Instead of fighting legally, they allegedly took the battle to the public, aiming to sway public opinion and influence the court's decision. Their strategy allegedly played out in key moments—the emergency live, Hani at the state audit, and their press conference.

The outlet reported that the private contract issue started with the word "ignore" from ILLIT's manager. However, it allegedly became about idol rights. After losing their court case, NewJeans spoke to foreign media, calling their situation "the reality of Korea" and "the darkness of K-pop." Per the MediaUs article, the word "revolutionary" from their TIME interview has become "awkward" and is being used online as a meme.

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Min Hee-jin found guilty of workplace bullying, plans to appeal ruling

On March 25, 2025, Min Hee-jin was found guilty of workplace bullying by South Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labor. The ruling followed a complaint from a former ADOR employee, "B." They accused the 46-year-old of harassment and mishandling a sexual harassment case. An investigation by the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office led to the ministry's decision.

Following the ruling, the former CEO's legal team strongly objected. They specifically pointed out errors in how her remarks were interpreted and argued that the investigation lacked objectivity. In response, they announced plans to appeal the decision through formal legal procedures, aiming to overturn what they called an unjust ruling.

"Upon reviewing the response regarding the handling of the case, it was confirmed that the facts surrounding the remarks that were determined to be workplace bullying were incorrectly acknowledged," the former executive of NewJeans' legal team stated (via Legal Chosun).

They added:

"There was a misunderstanding of the legal principles of the Labor Standards Act regarding workplace bullying and the duty of objective investigation."

Her team not only challenged the verdict but also slammed the media coverage. They argued the ruling wasn't final and accused some outlets of treating it as definitive. They urged journalists to respect privacy rules and warned of legal action if misleading reports persisted.