ADOR 1, NewJeans 0: Seoul Central Court Rules in Favor of ADOR Amid NewJeans Contract Dispute
- lewishooper1
- Nov 3
- 3 min read
Legal victory for ADOR as Seoul Central District Court rules on NewJeans contract dispute. We have all the details on this ongoing scandal!
What's the latest in this ongoing K-pop scandal?
The contract dispute between record label ADOR and NewJeans has been ongoing for months now, and the Dojeon Media team has kept you informed of the latest scandalous events throughout.
The latest on the contract dispute between ADOR and the girl group NewJeans is that the Seoul Central District Court affirmed the validity of NewJeans’ exclusive contract with the agency.
According to a report by The Chosun Daily, the court specifically stated it was “difficult to recognize that ADOR violated any contractual obligations” through the dismissal of former CEO Min Hee-jin. The ruling further mandated that NewJeans is responsible for covering the litigation costs, which are expected to run into the hundreds of millions of Korean won. Do you think this ruling is fair? Or does ADOR have so much influence, it's helped them win the battle?
Poor management
The court ruling also mentioned that the dismissal of former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin alone did not solely create the gap in management, which led to the poor management strategies when it came to NewJeans.
The court went on to mention that ADOR never once lacked plans or capability in their duties following the Min Hee-jin scandal, and the court clarified that the exclusive contract did not guarantee Min Hee-jin's tenure in the label, meaning that she could have departed or been fired at any time, and would have had nothing to do with New Jeans.
Actually, NewJeans members' personal trust in Min Hee-jin was not a "significant contractual obligation" requiring continued leadership by Min Hee-jin. The ruling concluded that ADOR was capable of fulfilling its obligations, citing the agency’s ongoing work on album releases, fan meetings, and world tour planning.
Fan response
Rightly so, fans have reacted to the latest news of the court ruling with a mix of emotions. Some fans have expressed their relief that this ongoing and very public ordeal is now close to being over, while others have expressed their concerns over the future of NewJeans.
Awkward working relationship
Imagine the intense drama and awkward moments in the company lifts while working together again.
ADOR and NewJeans have to legally be with the agency; however, the public drama brought on mainly by the behavior of NewJeans and the lack of trust between both sides is going to lead to some awkward interaction.
Picture this: every interaction, from recording sessions to planning meetings, will be strained by the members’ appeal and the management’s need to perform its duties under the threat of scrutiny and continued bad faith between both sides, especially since NewJeans have to pay for the court costs!
Final thoughts
While the court may have ruled in favor of ADOR as opposed to NewJeans, here at Dojeon Media, we believe that it was always going to play out like this, since money and power talk in what can be described as a 'still corrupt' system in Korea.
Although NewJeans are very talented, we are expecting to see their public image slowly dwindle in the coming year, mainly due to their "completely broken" trust in the relationship between the group itself and ADOR, particularly since the group's legal team immediately announced an appeal. There is also lingering worry about the group’s creative future and artistic freedom moving forward without former CEO Min Hee-jin.
Comment below and let the Dojeon team know your thoughts on this trending K-pop scandal.
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