Min Hee-jin and NewJeans Prepare for a Legal Battle Against HYBE Worth 4.5 Trillion Won
On November 15, Min Hee-jin shared fan art with the phrase “NewJeans Never Die.” This caught attention as it resembled fan art shared by NewJeans member Hanni last month, who had shown support for Min Hee-jin ahead of her lecture, “Good luck today, CEO! Of course, you’ll crush it.”
The post gained even more attention due to the ongoing legal dispute with HYBE.
Earlier this month, Min Hee-jin exercised her put option (right to sell shares) with HYBE. According to the shareholders’ agreement, exercising the put option means Min Hee-jin is entitled to receive an amount calculated by multiplying ADOR’s average operating profit for the past two years by 13, divided by the total number of issued shares. In this case, Min Hee-jin would receive about 26 billion won (approx 19.26 million USD), as ADOR posted a deficit of 4 billion won (approx 2.96 million USD) in 2022 but made an operating profit of 33.5 billion won (approx 24.02 million USD) in 2023.
However, Min Hee-jin cannot immediately receive the payment. HYBE filed a lawsuit in July to nullify the shareholders’ agreement, arguing that there were issues with trust and other factors. The outcome of this lawsuit will determine if Min Hee-jin can exercise her put option.
Additionally, NewJeans sent a formal letter to ADOR and CEO Kim Joo-young. The letter demands strict action regarding an internal HYBE document that included a statement about Min Hee-jin returning as CEO and the suggestion that “New (NewJeans) can be replaced by a new team.” It also demands an official apology from the manager who allegedly told Hanni to “ignore” them. The members warned that if these issues were not corrected within 14 days, they would terminate their exclusive contract.
If NewJeans terminated their contract with HYBE, they could face a penalty of over 4.5 trillion won (approx 3.23 billion USD). To avoid this, they would need to prove HYBE’s fault and win the lawsuit for termination. The key factor in the lawsuit would be whether the relationship of trust between the two parties has been irreparably damaged and who is at fault.
While this legal battle is ongoing, it could lead to a halt in NewJeans’ activities, which would be a significant blow, especially since they are only in their second year since debut.
ADOR stated on November 14, “We have received the formal letter and are reviewing it. We are aware of the specific requests and will do our best to resolve the issue wisely so that we can continue working with the artists.” The public is now watching closely to see if the two parties can reach a dramatic agreement.
Source: Nate