NewJeans Hani Returns, Daniel's Contract Terminated... Minji's Status Under Discussion

Girl group NewJeans member Hani has finalized her official return on the 29th after resolving the exclusive contract dispute with her agency ADOR. In contrast, member Daniel received a notice of contract termination from ADOR on the same day, confirming his departure from the group.

ADOR stated in an official statement that "Hani has made the final decision to be with ADOR in respect of the court's ruling." They further explained, "In Daniel's case, we judged that it would be difficult to continue as a member of NewJeans and an artist under ADOR, and therefore notified him of the contract termination today."

The agency also hinted at legal action against Daniel. ADOR emphasized, "We plan to hold legal responsibility against one family member of Daniel, who has caused this dispute and has significant responsibility for Daniel's departure from NewJeans and the delay in the return."

The members of NewJeans demanded the return of former representative Min Hee-jin, who was dismissed due to conflicts with HYBE, but when this was not accepted, they unilaterally claimed contract termination citing violations of the exclusive contract by ADOR last November.

In response, ADOR filed a lawsuit for contract validity confirmation in December of the same year and also submitted a request for a preliminary injunction to limit the members' independent activities. The court ruled in favor of ADOR in both the preliminary injunction case and the first trial of the main lawsuit.

Following the court ruling, the return of NewJeans members has been carried out sequentially. Haerin and Hyein were the first to express their intention to return to the agency last month, followed by Hani, Minji, and Daniel also expressing their intention to return.

Negotiations regarding the remaining member Minji are currently ongoing. ADOR stated, "Minji is also in discussions with ADOR, and we are continuously engaging in discussions to broaden mutual understanding."

ADOR explained that they are working to resolve misunderstandings during the members' return process. "We have learned that the members have developed many misunderstandings about the company while hearing distorted and biased information for a long time, leading to disputes," they said, adding, "We agreed that a process to completely resolve misunderstandings based on accurate facts is necessary, even if it takes some time."

They also added, "We will have the opportunity to discuss various controversies that arose during the dispute later, and we are discussing the timing and method of this," hinting at future official clarifications.