MIN HEEJIN PUSHED FOR PUNISHMENT FOR FALSE ACCUSATIONS & LEAKED CONTRACT TO THE MEDIA

SOURCE: https://m.news.nate.com/view/20241011n21158

TLDR:

HYBE denied former ADORE CEO Min Hee-jin’s allegations in court, arguing that they had already planned to reappoint her as an internal director, making her injunction unnecessary. HYBE rejected her request to be reinstated as CEO, citing a broken trust due to her alleged attempt to make ADORE independent and take over management. They also accused her of leaking confidential information and interfering in a sexual harassment investigation. HYBE refuted Min’s claims that ILLIT copied NewJeans, calling it part of her broader plan to gain control of the company. A shareholder meeting is scheduled for October 17 to address Min’s reappointment as an internal director.

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HYBE has denied the allegations made by former ADORE CEO Min Hee-jin.

On October 11, a court hearing was held regarding Min Hee-jin’s injunction to convene an extraordinary shareholder meeting and reappoint ADORE’s internal directors. During the hearing, HYBE addressed the first part of Min’s request for reappointment, stating that ADORE had already decided to reappoint Min as an internal director once her term ends in early November. They explained that a shareholder meeting had been scheduled for October 17 to formalize this, which had already been publicly announced. As a result, HYBE argued that the injunction was unnecessary and should be dismissed.

Regarding Min’s request to be reinstated as CEO, HYBE argued that such a position requires a relationship of trust between shareholders, which had been broken when Min allegedly betrayed the company. They referred to a previous court decision from May, which found that Min had tried to leave HYBE with NewJeans or pressure HYBE to sell ADORE shares to make the label independent. HYBE cited this as the reason for terminating the shareholder agreement with Min, countering her claim that the termination was unjustified.

In court, HYBE presented evidence of discussions between Min and former ADORE Vice President Lee Sang-woo, accusing Min of conspiring to seize management rights. HYBE claimed that this dispute had been brewing for months and was unrelated to the issues of unfair audits or artist plagiarism, as Min had claimed. They said that Min had been planning to take control of ADORE as far back as January, meeting with capital firms and drafting a report known as "Project 1945." This report allegedly included plans for compensating Min in case of termination, identifying potential investors, and ways to pressure HYBE shareholders to sell their shares.

HYBE also disclosed that Min had leaked the original shareholder agreement to a media outlet, which violated confidentiality clauses. This breach was one of the reasons HYBE used to justify terminating the shareholder contract.

In addition, HYBE explained that Min’s removal as CEO was also due to her inappropriate involvement in a sexual harassment case involving a former ADORE executive. They claimed that Min tried to interfere with the investigation by sharing confidential information with the accused executive and publicly aligning her personal stance with ADORE's official position, which negatively impacted the company's image.

As soon as the related report was first filed, Min Hee-jin claimed that "a punishment clause for false accusers should also be established" and unauthorizedly shared the investigation results with the former Vice President, who was identified as the perpetrator.

HYBE also refuted Min’s claims that ILLIT, a group managed by HYBE’s BELIFT Lab, had copied NewJeans’ concept. They stated that Min had raised the plagiarism issue with a law firm in April, but the law firm found the plagiarism claims ambiguous and unlikely to succeed. HYBE argued that Min had raised these issues as part of her larger strategy to attack HYBE and gain management control.

During the trial, the judge questioned Min’s legal team, asking why they had requested the board of directors to vote on her reappointment as CEO when it wasn’t even on the meeting agenda.

HYBE revealed that they would hold an extraordinary shareholder meeting on October 17 to address Min’s reappointment as an internal director. They also clarified that Min’s role as NewJeans’ producer would continue for the remaining five years of her contract, regardless of her position as CEO.