OMEGA X: Group attends first hearing regarding termination of contract with Spire Entertainment

TRIGGER WARNING: Mention of abuse

On the afternoon of December 7th, the 21st Civil Division of the Seoul Eastern District Court filed a lawsuit against Spire Entertainment, an exclusive contract suspension, filed by OMEGA X members Jaehan, Hwichan, Sebin, Hangyeom, Taedong, Jen, Jehyeon, Kevin, Junghoon, Hyuk and Yechan. The first interrogation date was held. On this day, all 11 members of OMEGA X attended. The members entered the court with a firm expression, and many fans who came to the court to see them stood out.

The beginning of the hearing:

The presiding judge said, “Party A (OMEGA X) requested a provisional disposition to suspend the exclusive contract against the Party B (Spire Entertainment). Through explanatory materials, the Party B is claiming that the relationship of trust was broken because the Party B did not protect the Party A through verbal abuse and assault. In addition, for those who have signed consignment contracts, have also applied for termination.”

About the world tour:

"On the other hand, Party B's side said in a response that the world tour was difficult at the time, but emotions exploded in a situation where Party B paid for the tour. In light of the situation at the time, it is the position that there is no problem of personality rights. In addition, even if they spoke in an abusive language, it is not a reason for Kim Jae Han's cancellation or other members' cancellation."

OMEGA X and Spire Entertainment:

While the defenses of both sides began, OMEGA X's lawyer said, "Party A are claiming the suspension of the exclusive contract because they were forced to drink by the representative of the agency and insulted for a long time. If you look at Party B's answers, they mention creditors' personal deviance, but this has nothing to do with the suspension of the exclusive contract." Then the attorney representing Spire Entertainment said, “I do not deny the abusive language and profanity submitted by the Party A. However, the fact that we talked about the problems of various Party A (in the circumstances) is that it is not something that can deny the exclusive contract.” In addition, “in order for Party A to terminate the contract, they must have a 14-day deadline for corrective action, and Party B promised corrective action during that period. I don't think asking for an immediate termination of the contract in this situation is a breach of contract."

OMEGA X:

The judge directly asked the members of OMEGA X who were present in court if there was any reason to terminate the exclusive contract with the agency. The presiding judge said, “Party A have been working on OMEGA X since August 2021, and in the meantime, they also went to overseas performances for a month. Did you receive any settlement?" The members said in unison, "No." Attorney for Spire Entertainment said, “OMEGA X was not yet profitable, so it was not in a situation where we could pay. There was no profit from the previous album, and the tour has not yet been settled. In addition, there are cases where each member has been paid a down payment in advance.”

The conflicts:

The two sides also had conflicting views on the flight cancellation and the sexual harassment case. Originally, the OMEGA X members were scheduled to take a flight from the United States to Korea on October 23, but after the agency's representative's verbal abuse and assault were reported to the media, it was known that Spire canceled the members' return flight tickets, and they were detained. Attorney for Spire Entertainment said, “It was originally considered to be canceled, but since that happened, it seems that Party B had it out for the group.

Regarding the plane ticket incident:

At that time, there were only seats left on the plane that had run out. So, they were considering canceling the flight in order to protect the artist because fans could sit next to them. There is absolutely no detention.” Then, OMEGA X's lawyer said, "All of these words are lies. There is a message from CEO Kang of Spire that she will cancel all airline tickets. Also, there were plane tickets left at the time.” In addition, when the attorney for Spire Ent. said, “As far as we know, the sexual harassment part is groundless,” OMEGA X’s lawyer said, “(Regarding the sexual harassment part) We plan to sue after the injunction lawsuit is over. Criminal cases are a part that takes more time, so we will prepare and proceed.”

Hangyeom's statement:

When asked by the judge if there was anything he wanted to say in court, Hangyeom said, “The 11 of us are a team with the intention of trying to do well again after failing once. That's why we were so desperate, and even if we were treated unfairly, we wanted to succeed even if we had to endure it. It hurts my heart so much that things had to turn out like this. We hope that this will not happen to artists and trainees in the industry in the future. We will continue to try to make good music and bring good performances.”

Disclaimer: If you know someone who is struggling with physical or verbal abuse, please reach out to the authorities and report it. There are several helplines available for the same.

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