Min Hee-jin, the former CEO of Ador, who has been cleared of breach of trust charges related to the so-called 'HYBE incident', is now facing the question of whether her claims against HYBE Labels (Belift Lab, Source Music) will be recognized.
On the 18th, the 12th Civil Division of the Seoul Western District Court will hold the third hearing of a lawsuit filed by Belift Lab against former CEO Min for damages amounting to 2 billion won. Alongside this, the court will continue the legal battle regarding a 500 million won damages lawsuit filed by Source Music against former CEO Min last July.
Former CEO Min began her confrontation with HYBE in April of last year, expressing dissatisfaction with the commencement of an audit by HYBE. At that time, HYBE claimed that Min was attempting to seize control of the company from the Ador trainees. However, Min argued that her actions were a retaliatory response to the unfair treatment of her group, NewJeans, and she erected a wall against these claims. She particularly detailed the unfair experiences NewJeans faced during their debut process.
Source Music is challenging Min's claims that she "directly cast the members of NewJeans" and that "Source Music neglected the members." Belift Lab has also pushed back against claims that their group, ILY:1, plagiarized the choreography of NewJeans.
Both parties are determined to clear their grievances regarding the issues related to NewJeans. On this day, Min's side and both companies are expected to engage in a courtroom battle with approximately 30 minutes of PPT materials.
In the meantime, the momentum is on Min's side. Recently, she received a non-prosecution decision from the court stating that "it is difficult to recognize the criminal elements of breach of trust," which has added weight to her claims of innocence after nearly a year of police investigation.
Some industry insiders believe that "Min's side being cleared of breach of trust charges ahead of this trial can be seen as a significant achievement. It lends credibility to her claims."
HYBE has filed an objection to the ruling and plans to continue the dispute.
One obstacle is that during the process of dismissing the objection to the injunction filed by Ador regarding the preservation of agency status and the prohibition of contract signing, the court clarified that NewJeans members are former trainees of Source Music.
The court corrected the fact that Minji, a member of NewJeans, was already selected as a Source Music trainee before Min Hee-jin joined HYBE, stating, "There is no evidence that Min Hee-jin was involved in the selection process of the other members. NewJeans are merely trainees of Source Music, and there is no proof of involvement."
It remains to be seen what evidence Min's side will present in court to substantiate their claims.
The 22nd is also the third anniversary of NewJeans' debut. Before celebrating this milestone with the members, Min continues to engage in a tough battle against the HYBE faction. The NewJeans members are currently on hiatus as well. Attention is focused on what actions Min, known as the 'NewJeans Mom', will take in the future.
[Ji Seung-hoon, Star Today Reporter]
