NewJeans members announced the termination of their exclusive contract with ADOR through an emergency press conference on November 28.
On the same day, ADOR enforced that the exclusive contract was still valid and urged the group to carry out their scheduled activities as usual.
The next day, NewJeans released an official statement in response to ADOR’s statement, declaring that they had terminated their contract with the label.
On December 5, ADOR announced that they filed a lawsuit against NewJeans on December 3 through the official press release. The label emphasized, “We filed a lawsuit at the Seoul Central District Court to legally confirm that our exclusive contract with our artist NewJeans is valid and remains in effect.”
They explained, “Although we did not want the issue with our artist to be resolved through a legal judgment, we felt it was necessary to confirm to the artist and various stakeholders that the exclusive contract between our agency and the artist cannot be terminated solely based on one-sided claims, hence the unavoidable decision.”
ADOR says they filed the lawsuit to clear up any confusion about NewJeans’ contract status and prevent potential problems.
In addition, they said their stance on working with NewJeans remains unchanged. The agency thinks it is crucial to have open and honest talks with the artists, separate from the court case about their contract.
Despite many attempts, ADOR shared that they have not been able to talk to the artists yet, but they’re committed to clearing up any misunderstandings that have developed.
At the press conference, NewJeans members shared their desire to work with former ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin. They have consistently demanded her reinstatement and publicly supported her since her dismissal in late August.