Why the Court Ruled in Favor of Min Hee-jin: Evidence of Plagiarism and Discrimination against NewJeans Presented

The Civil Agreement Division 50 of the Seoul Central District Court has decided that “HYBE must not use its voting rights to support the ‘termination of executive director Min Hee-jin’ at ADOR’s extraordinary shareholders’ meeting”and has mandated that “20 billion won must be paid if this order is disobeyed.”

Upon review, the court determined that the evidence presented by HYBE did not adequately support their claims of CEO Min Hee-jin’s breach of duty and other reasons for her dismissal.

Furthermore, although it seemed that Min Hee-jin had been attempting to diminish HYBE’s authority over ADOR by requesting modifications to the shareholders’ agreement and potentially transferring NewJeans away from HYBE’s influence, the court declared that there was insufficient proof of her actively implementing these strategies.

Attorney Noh Jong-eon noted that Min Hee-jin’s actions, which may have been viewed as a betrayal of HYBE, were in fact provoked by the company’s discriminatory treatment and issues with album promotion. He suggested that both parties could be seen as betraying each other, and the court’s ruling appeared to acknowledge the complexity of the situation rather than solely blaming Min Hee-jin for the betrayal.

The court recognized that Min Hee-jin’s complaints, including ILLIT’s plagiarism of NewJeans, discrimination against the brand, and problems with album promotion, were all valid concerns. They determined that HYBE’s claims of Min Hee-jin influencing the parents of NewJeans members to protest these issues were unfounded.

The court had trouble determining whether the information Min Hee-jin disclosed (such as KakaoTalk conversations) should be considered ADOR’s trade secrets, and also struggled to prove that these leaks caused any specific financial harm to the company.

The court denied HYBE’s assertion that Min Hee-jin’s actions towards stylist B, who was reportedly compensated for work on NewJeans’ ads, amounted to a violation of her responsibilities. They concluded that there was no proof of ADOR experiencing financial harm as a result of these actions.

The court’s decision prohibits HYBE from participating in the removal of Min Hee-jin at ADOR’s special shareholders’ meeting, as there is insufficient evidence to support a claim of breach of duty or breach of the shareholders’ agreement.

After the court’s ruling, Min Hee-jin suggested a reconciliation with HYBE during the press conference on May 31st. However, HYBE has yet to release a statement addressing this proposal.

On that very day, an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting was held by HYBE at ADOR. The remaining board members, with the exception of Min Hee-jin, were dismissed and replaced by new members from HYBE. These new members included CHRO Kim Joo-young, CSO Lee Jae-sang, and CFO Lee Kyung-joon.

After the court’s decision, HYBE released a statement stating their intention to continue with legal actions while acknowledging the court’s acknowledgement of Min Hee-jin’s efforts to gain independent control of ADOR.