Those interested or involved in the Kpop sphere are already quite aware of the infamous NewJeans case, seeing it as an unfortunate disturbance in the girl group’s success. However, most who are not a part of that demographic likely don’t know anything regarding this case whatsoever. So, what is NewJeans VS. HYBE, and why does it matter?
First, some background information: NewJeans is a Korean girl group who first debuted on July 22, 2022. They became immensely popular very quickly into their career–becoming the fastest K-pop act to reach 1 billion Spotify streams, winning a Daesang (extremely prestigious Korean entertainment award) only 5 months after their debut, and more recently, becoming the fastest K-pop group to hit 7 billion Spotify streams, surpassing BTS. Even though many in the west may not be aware of them–although, it’s likely you probably heard at least a snippet of one of their songs due to them trending often–it’s safe to say they are quite well known and accomplished. However, many Kpop fans say they ruined their own career in April of 2024, when legal issues first began.
NewJeans is managed by ADOR, a label under a larger company known as HYBE, which produced multiple other popular Kpop groups such as BTS, Enhypen, and Le Sserafim. In April of 2024, a power struggle erupted between HYBE and Min Heejin, the founding CEO of ADOR and the creative director credited with shaping NewJeans’ success. HYBE accused Min of trying to seize full control of ADOR, while Min argued that HYBE’s accusation was completely unjustified as HYBE owned 80% of ADOR. As these battles continued, Min was later removed as CEO of ADOR over alleged disagreements in terms of ADOR’s direction in August, 2024.
After this termination, NewJeans members immediately began supporting Min, demanding that she be reinstated as soon as possible. When HYBE denied this, the members went public with multiple complaints against the label, claiming that HYBE deliberately tried to undermine their careers and the members (specifically Hanni) consistently suffered workplace abuse and harassment. In November, NewJeans announced they intended to terminate their contract with ADOR/HYBE and work independently under their rebrand: NJZ. However, ADOR filed a lawsuit against NewJeans’ claims against them soon after in December, 2024. ADOR also secured an injunction, which banned the girl group from performing or signing deals without ADOR’s approval, effectively preventing them from working independently. NewJeans performed in one last show in Hong Kong, where they announced their hiatus.
These legal battles would continue until late October of 2025, when the Seoul Central District Court ruled in favor of ADOR/HYBE. The court found that contracts with NewJeans remained valid and binding, and that the group cannot freely leave the label until said contracts expire (2029). Min’s removal did not justify the termination of these contracts and ADOR could still fulfill its obligations as manager. In addition, no mistreatment of the girls was proven despite defense claims, as there was no substantial evidence HYBE breached obligations.
In addition, Min’s complaints against HYBE in regards to breaching privacy (specifically laptop data and messages) was not forwarded for prosecution by law enforcement. However, Min was cleared by Seoul police of the criminal charge of breach of the trust that HYBE had filed against her. The investigation was closed without prosecution, although HYBE intended to appeal the decision.
When NewJeans lost the case, many Kpop fans were disappointed but not surprised. Many of them recognized that NewJeans did not have enough evidence of mistreatment and abuse against HYBE to win the case, and many of the defense’s claims–such as one of HYBE’s newer girl groups, ILLIT, “copied” NewJeans–also fell short in court. One user on Reddit said, “As much as I loved new jeans anyone with a job knew that this was going to happen. I wish that someone would have told them to get legal advice and just overall advice from someone other than MHJ.” Another user says, “wow who could have predicted things would end up like this” which gained 900 upvotes.
Many fans blame Min Heejin for ruining the girls’ careers, claiming that she groomed and manipulated the young members since they were teenagers. They believe she brainwashed them into believing she was the sole reason for their success, and she was like a mother figure to them. While the consensus around NewJeans is now quite controversial, many feel pity and sadness for the girls as the adults around them (including their parents) completely let them down. Huge fans of the group, known as “Bunnies,” expressed immense sadness and displeasure at the outcome, and sympathized with their situation.
Even though there was not enough substantial evidence that NewJeans was abused by HYBE, the allegations are not completely without substance. It’s a known fact within the Kpop community that the Kpop industry is extremely toxic and full of abuse and mistreatment of their idols, ranging from verbally harassing them, to starving them, to physically abusing them.
Many had hope that the NewJeans case would successfully bring more attention to this mistreatment, and inspire other groups to take a stand, as it’s extremely rare for idols to speak out. However, the result of this case would likely have the opposite effect. Due to NewJeans losing, this would likely cause idols to fear speaking out even more and discourage them from expressing their grievances. The backlash that the group received from speaking out also didn’t necessarily help legally. Despite this, the case itself still managed to successfully raise awareness regarding mistreatment in the Kpop industry and caused greater scrutiny on idol welfare.
Even though HYBE won the case, they did not necessarily come out of it unscathed. Like NewJeans, this case damaged HYBE’s public image immensely. The court siding reinforced how truly strong idol contracts were, and that the agencies’ legal leverage made it far more difficult for idols to willingly leave labels. Additionally, internal emails, audits, and power struggles became public, harming HYBE’s reputation further, as many fans now mainly see the company as controlling and abusive toward its idols.
Although this case certainly didn’t change the Kpop industry overnight, it undeniably reshaped how many Kpop fans viewed the industry. Similar cases occurred in the past, such as the girl group, LOONA, against their agency, BlockBerry Creative, for allegedly not paying the members properly, having unfair contracts, and mistreating the members. But, due to NewJeans’ notoriety, and the recency of the case, many more casual Kpop fans became aware of the true conditions of the industry and harsh treatment of idols. Although NewJeans did lose in the end and will be forced to continue performing under ADOR/HYBE, this case was able to spread a great amount of awareness to the general public that will undoubtedly continue to mold the Kpop industry in the future in regards to conduct toward idols.
