HYBE LABELS, the parent company of NewJeans’ ADOR, and Min Hee Jin, the former CEO and internal director of the subsidiary, have been at the center of a legal dispute since last year. On April 17, a significant update came in the ongoing case, as reported by K-media outlet Star News. The court made a pivotal decision to combine two lawsuits into one—HYBE’s request to confirm the termination of a shareholders’ agreement and Min Hee Jin’s lawsuit regarding her put option.
Although these two cases were initially set to be heard separately, much like ADOR’s legal actions against NewJeans over the validity of their exclusive contracts, the Seoul Central District Court’s 31st Civil Affairs Department decided to merge them during a hearing on April 17 at 2:00 PM KST. Judge Nam In Soo ruled that the 26 billion KRW (approximately 18.3 million USD) put option case would now be part of the ongoing legal proceedings.
The shareholder agreement between Min Hee Jin and HYBE stipulated a five-year term as ADOR’s CEO and internal director. A key clause in this agreement was the put option, which allowed Min Hee Jin to sell 13.5% of her 18% stake in ADOR to HYBE under certain conditions. Min Hee Jin reportedly exercised this option in November 2024, just after stepping down from her position as ADOR’s director. However, HYBE contends that this action was legally invalid.
HYBE argues that since Min Hee Jin’s contract with them was no longer in effect, she was not entitled to exercise the put option and sell her shares for the agreed-upon sum. The company has filed this lawsuit to determine whether the contract was validly terminated, with Min Hee Jin asserting that her agreement with HYBE was not properly terminated, which would make her eligible to sell her shares and claim the corresponding payment.
In defense, HYBE’s legal team emphasized that both parties are disputing the termination of the contract, but the central issue remains determining who is responsible for the breach, which they aim to clarify through the legal proceedings.
