Min Hee-jin and Hybe’s legal battle grinds on — even as NewJeans exit fight

The legal dispute between former Ador CEO Min Hee-jin and Hybe, Ador’s parent company, is expected to stretch into next year, even as the involvement of girl group NewJeans — once at the heart of the conflict — has largely come to an end.

The standoff began in April last year, when Hybe accused Min of attempting to seize control of Ador and its flagship act, NewJeans. The dispute quickly escalated after Min held an emergency press conference later that month, publicly criticizing Hybe and its affiliated labels, including Belift Lab and Source Music. What began as a corporate governance issue soon widened into a complex legal battle spanning multiple subsidiaries.

Hybe dismissed Min from her post as Ador CEO in August. Three months later, NewJeans notified Ador of their unilateral contract termination, citing Min’s removal as the key justification. The group, however, lost a lawsuit seeking confirmation that its exclusive contracts were invalid and its members all announced they would return to the agency, bringing the group's direct involvement in the dispute to a close.

Min’s legal confrontation with Hybe, however, remains unresolved. Several lawsuits are still underway, including a civil case over the termination of a shareholder agreement between Min and Hybe and whether Min is entitled to exercise a put option valued at an estimated 26 billion won ($17.57 billion). Separate claims for damages filed by Source Music and Belift Lab — seeking 500 million won and 2 billion won, respectively — are also ongoing.

Shareholder agreement, put option dispute

On Thursday, the Seoul Central District Court held the fourth hearing in Hybe’s lawsuit seeking confirmation that it lawfully terminated its shareholder agreement with Min, alongside Min’s countersuit demanding payment tied to a put option.

Hybe filed the lawsuit to terminate its shareholder agreement with Min and another person in July 2024. Min and two others subsequently filed a claim seeking payment for the exercise of their put option — a contractual right allowing shareholders to sell their shares at a pre-agreed price.

Hybe argued that the former Ador CEO had already violated the agreement by planning to remove NewJeans from the company and that the shareholder agreement had been terminated roughly four months before Min attempted to exercise the put option, rendering it invalid.

Min rejected the claim, maintaining that she never sought to take NewJeans out of Hybe and that the shareholder agreement remained valid at the time she exercised the option, giving her a legitimate right to payment.

A major point of contention involves Lee Sang-woo, Ador’s former vice president and a close associate of Min. Hybe alleged that after joining Ador, Lee accessed internal Hybe financial folders without authorization and downloaded 51 financial documents related to multiple labels. The company also presented mobile phone messages indicating that Lee had shared other labels’ business materials at Min’s request in January last year, prior to his transfer.

Hybe further pressed Min over alleged unauthorized contact with overseas investors. Messages referencing Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) were submitted as evidence. Min dismissed the claims as speculative, calling them “just talk,” and added that receiving a high purchase offer would not, in itself, be problematic — a remark that drew attention in court.

Business ties, disputed messages

Another contentious issue centered on BANA, an Ador partner company. When asked by Hybe’s legal team whether BANA CEO Kim Ki-hyun was her former romantic partner, Min confirmed the relationship. Hybe argued that contract renewals increasingly favored BANA, claiming the firm was structured to receive 33 million won per month even without active work and that payments continued even after NewJeans declared contract termination. Min countered that BANA was retained because of its competence and performance.

Hybe also questioned Min about messages exchanged with a shaman, including the phrase “let’s take it back after three years.” Min said the conversation took place before Ador’s establishment and dismissed it as meaningless. Hybe has cited the exchange — reportedly sent around March 2021 — as evidence supporting its claim that Min intended to seize management control.

Min also argued that her removal as Ador CEO was unjustified, describing herself as a scapegoat for speaking out against Hybe. She said her lawsuits are not motivated by money but by a desire to clear her name and address what she described as false accusations.

Separate defamation lawsuit

A separate case continued Friday at the Seoul Western District Court, where Source Music held the fifth hearing in its 500 million won damages lawsuit against Min, alleging defamation, business obstruction and insult.

Source Music filed the suit last July following Min’s April press conference, during which she claimed Hybe had promised to debut NewJeans as its first girl group but later reneged, and alleged that Source Music had neglected all five NewJeans members who were Source Music trainees then. Source Music has denied all claims, arguing that Min’s remarks were false and fueled damaging rumors about its girl group Le Sserafim.

Min’s legal team argued that the remarks were made during a roughly two-hour press conference held in self-defense, responding to Hybe’s audit and what it described as unfair media pressure. The lawyers accused Source Music of selectively extracting and distorting portions of Min’s statements while ignoring their broader context.

Source Music countered that context does not negate defamation, arguing that repeating unverified claims — even if attributed to others — does not absolve responsibility. Its legal representative also challenged Min’s assertions about production delays, saying they reflected a misunderstanding of how idol group development works.