[Exclusive] ADOR Appoints New Lawyers for Danielle’s Damages Lawsuit, Requests Court Date Change

ADOR, the agency behind NewJeans, has appointed four new legal representatives.

According to a report by MyDaily on the 12th, ADOR recently hired four lawyers from Law Firm Lihan and immediately submitted an application to change the scheduled court date.

Previously, five lawyers from Kim & Chang, who had been representing ADOR, all resigned on the 24th of last month. The newly appointed Law Firm Lihan is also handling the defense for HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk regarding violations of the Capital Markets Act.

The Seoul Central District Court is set to hold the first pleading session on the 14th at 3:10 PM to formally examine the arguments from both sides. This main trial comes about two months after the first preparatory hearing held on March 26.

Amidst the ongoing exclusive contract dispute with NewJeans members, ADOR filed a damages lawsuit worth approximately 43 billion won last December, coinciding with the termination of Danielle’s contract. ADOR maintains that Danielle’s side and Min Hee-jin bear significant responsibility for NewJeans’ departure and the delay in their return, and intends to hold them legally accountable. The case is being handled by the 31st Civil Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Nam In-soo), the same division that ruled in favor of former CEO Min Hee-jin in the first instance of her put option lawsuit against HYBE.

Furthermore, on February 2, the Seoul Central District Court granted ADOR’s request for the provisional seizure of real estate belonging to Danielle’s mother and Min Hee-jin. The total claim amount is 7 billion won, with real estate seized up to 2 billion won for Danielle’s mother and 5 billion won for Min Hee-jin.