Court dismisses NewJeans' appeal against injuction ruling, Ador hopes group will return to agency
Members of the K-pop group had filed an appeal against the court’s decision to prohibit their independent activities.
Members of South Korean K-Pop group NewJeans attend a press conference to declare contract termination with the band's label citing multiple reasons including unfair treatment, in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Nov 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
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On Tuesday (Jun 17), the 25-2 Civil Division of the Seoul High Court dismissed an appeal filed by members of K-pop girl group NewJeans against a previous court ruling to prohibit their independent activities.
In November last year, NewJeans unilaterally ended their contracts with South Korean music label Ador, citing workplace harassment and other issues. The group then proceeded to carry out numerous independent activities.
In January this year, Ador applied for an injunction against NewJeans that would prohibit members of the quintet from signing advertising contracts independently.
On Mar 21, the Seoul Central District Court granted this injunction.
Days later, following the group's performance at the pop culture convention ComplexCon Hong Kong, the members of NewJeans declared that the group will go on a hiatus to respect the court's ruling.
Last month, the Seoul Central District Court announced that it had accepted Ador's application for an indirect compulsory enforcement – a type of penalty imposed for not complying with a court order – against NewJeans.
As such, the court declared that each NewJeans member will have to pay 1 billion won (US$727,180) for every unauthorised activity performed from here on out.Â
On Wednesday (Jun 18), Ador issued a statement on the court's ruling.
"Yesterday, there was a decision from the appellate court that once again clearly confirmed that Ador is the agency representing NewJeans," it wrote.
"We are deeply grateful for the court’s judgement. We hope that this decision will serve as an opportunity for the members to return to their rightful place as NewJeans and resume their activities. As NewJeans marks their third debut anniversary next month, the company plans to do its utmost to support them in making even greater strides and growth."
As of writing, the members of NewJeans have yet to issue a statement on Tuesday's ruling.
Separately, the first trial for the main lawsuit filed by Ador against NewJeans to confirm the validity of their exclusive contracts is currently ongoing.
