Seoul High Court rules NewJeans must honour contracts with Ador, Entertainment News

AsiaOne

20-06-2025

NewJeans have had their request for an appeal to be freed of their contract with record label Ador rejected.
Seoul High Court ruled on Tuesday (June 17) that the K-pop girl group — comprising Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin and Hyein — must honour their contracts with Ador and not embark on solo endeavours as they could be penalised for doing so.
Commenting on the decision, Ador said in a statement: "We sincerely appreciate the court's decision. We hope that this ruling will serve as an opportunity for the members to return to their rightful place as NewJeans and resume their activities. As they approach their third debut anniversary next month, Ador is committed to providing full support for the artists' further growth and success."
The K-pop label had suggested the girls inking independent deals could "destabilise" the South Korean music sector.
Ador — which is part of the Hybe group — said: "This decision was made to prevent confusion and potential harm to third parties, including advertisers.
"Allowing unilateral terminations of exclusive contracts and independent activities without legal procedures could undermine investment in the entertainment industry and destabilise the K-pop sector."
In September, NewJeans accused Ador of bullying, harassment and subterfuge, and two months later, they requested their contract be terminated.
However, South Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labour dismissed the harassment claims.
The girls held an emergency press conference to announce their exit from Ador and warned the agency they would terminate their contract if they did not rectify breaches of their contract.
In response, Ador said: "We regret that the press conference regarding the termination of the exclusive contract was planned and conducted without sufficient review, prior to receiving a response to the legal notice."
Ador then filed a lawsuit against NewJeans to "clarify" that their contract "cannot be unilaterally terminated" based on their claims.
The label said: "It was necessary to clarify to both the artist and all relevant stakeholders that our exclusive contract cannot be unilaterally terminated based solely on the claims from one side."
Ador added: "We believe it is important to clarify any misunderstanding that the exclusive contract with the artist has been lawfully terminated, as this could lead to the artist engaging in entertainment activities in violation of the existing agreement."
Ador denied all the allegations made against them.
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