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NewJeans vs ADOR: Court expresses anger with 1 billion KRW penalty slap, reveals why fine was inflicted
The court revealed the reason for inflicting a 1 billion KRW fine on NewJeans was their latest Hong Kong act. Read to know what the judge said regarding the violation of obligations.
On May 30, another court hearing was held for ADOR's injunction to halt NewJeans' independent entertainment activities. The ruling went against the girl group as they were asked to pay a subsequent penalty amount of 1 billion KRW for each violation of the court's verdict. As it sparked netizen discussions, the court finally revealed the reason for such an order, as reported by the K-media outlet Insight.
Court revealed reason for NewJeans' 1 billion KRW fine order
Presiding Judge Heo Kyung Moo of the Seoul Central District Court's 52nd Civil Division reiterated his decision that NewJeans can't engage in independent entertainment activities or work with third-party agencies without ADOR's approval.
Citing the reason for inflicting a 1 billion KRW (approximately 730,000 USD) fine per violation, he said, it was necessary to ensure proper adherence to the verdict. Heo Kyung Moo mentioned a previous case where the NewJeans members did not follow the court order.
Court cited NewJeans' ComplexCon act as reason for 1 billion KRW fine
In March of this year, NewJeans performed at ComplexCon in Hong Kong without ADOR's consent, under their new moniker, NJZ. As per the judge, it went against the court ruling. He also criticized the girl group for releasing new music under the name NJZ instead of NewJeans.
Due to such instances, the court was of the opinion that the K-pop artists would continue their arbitrary acts without respecting the court's decision in the future at all. Hence, bringing a fine angle seemed like a viable solution.
"Even after the provisional injunction, they (NewJeans) violated the obligations, and it seems like they will continue to violate it in the future, so it is necessary to order indirect enforcement to enforce the performance of the obligations by the provisional injunction," the judge said. However, the fine will be null and void if the quintet wins the exclusive contract validity case against ADOR, as clarified by NewJeans.
The hefty fine per violation set a new precedent in the Korean entertainment industry contract cases. The legal community saw it as a "strong decision to increase the injunction's effectiveness."
