Court orders NewJeans to pay $730,000 per independent activity without Ador’s approval
K-pop girl group NewJeans / Courtesy of Ador
A Seoul court has partially accepted an injunction request filed by Ador against K-pop girl group NewJeans, ordering the members not to carry out independent entertainment activities outside the agency until a ruling is made on the validity of their exclusive contracts.
The Seoul Central District Court on Friday ruled that NewJeans members must refrain from performing individually or through a third party without Ador’s prior consent or approval, until the first trial decision is made in a pending lawsuit confirming the validity of their exclusive contracts.
If the group violates the court’s order, each member will be required to pay 1 billion won ($730,000) per breach to Ador. The court also ordered NewJeans to bear the legal costs of the application.
This means NewJeans is now barred from engaging in independent activities until the final outcome of their contract termination case.
The group notified Ador of contract termination last November after revealing internal conflicts. They had since attempted to pursue independent activities under the name NJZ but now face restrictions.
Back in March, the court had fully accepted Ador’s initial injunction request. In response, the NewJeans members filed an objection and signaled their intent to continue promotional events.
They performed as NJZ at the ComplexCon Hong Kong event, and member Haerin took to social media to thank fans for their support during the ongoing legal battle.
The second hearing in the main lawsuit between NewJeans and Ador is scheduled for June 5.
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, a sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.