There has been a significant development in the ongoing legal battle between the K-pop group NewJeans and their agency, ADOR. A recent court decision means the group could face considerable financial penalties if they try to pursue entertainment activities without ADOR’s explicit go-ahead.
On May 29, the Seoul Central District Court’s 52nd Civil Affairs Department granted ADOR’s request for an “indirect compulsion” against NewJeans.
Prior to this ruling, an injunction application was accepted by the court on March 21, 2025. The verdict upheld ADOR’s agency status and prevented NewJeans from independently signing new advertising deals. NewJeans had immediately challenged that initial ruling, but their objection was turned down.
Before the court decision, the group rebranded as NJZ in February and was scheduled to perform at ComplexCon Hong Kong under the new stage name on March 23, 2025. However, the injunction was granted to their agency a couple of days earlier, and the 5-member group was ordered to stop independent activities. Instead of moving forward with the label, NewJeans temporarily halted activities until the court battle was over.
The court has now made it clear that NewJeans can’t engage in any entertainment activities—whether directly or through a third party, including their legal representatives—unless ADOR gives prior approval. This restriction will stay in place until the Seoul Central District Court announces its initial decision on ADOR’s lawsuit, which aims to confirm that their exclusive contract with NewJeans is still valid.
Importantly, the court’s order states that if NewJeans disregards this decision, they will be required to pay 1 billion won ($720,000) for each violation. This fine applies per member, so if all five members participate in an unauthorized activity, the penalty for that single instance could reach 5 billion won ($3.6 million).
Back in March, when the court made its initial decision, it noted that “Based solely on the claims and materials submitted by the NewJeans members to date, it is difficult to see that it has been sufficiently proven that ADOR violated an important obligation under the exclusive contract in this case, leading to grounds for termination of the exclusive contract, or that the mutual trust forming the basis of the exclusive contract has been irreparably broken.”
After that ruling, NewJeans announced they would be taking a break. In an interview with the BBC, the members shared, “It wasn’t an easy decision (hiatus) to make, but at the moment for us, it’s about protecting ourselves, so that we can come back stronger.”
After they parted ways with ADOR on November 29, 2025, the label filed a lawsuit to verify the validity of their exclusive contract. The next court hearing for the lawsuit concerning the validity of the exclusive contract is scheduled for June 5.
