As of April 4th, 2025, it has been revealed that some parents of NJZ (NewJeans) members are opposed to the ongoing dispute surrounding their children’s exclusive contract termination with ADOR. This marks the first time such a division has surfaced among the parents of the group.
The contract dispute between NewJeans and ADOR began last April, stemming from tensions between Hive, the parent company of ADOR, and the former representative, Min Hee Jin. Members of NewJeans have claimed that their exclusive contracts were terminated on November 29th, 2024, due to ADOR’s failure to fulfill its obligations. Since then, the parents of the group have taken a more active role, even establishing a social media account to publicly represent NewJeans’ position.
On April 3rd, 2025, the first court hearing for the ‘confirmation of the validity of the exclusive contract’ case was held at the Seoul Central District Court. During this session, the judge asked the NewJeans side, “Has the family court decided on the exercise of parental rights, which has been approved for all legal actions taken so far?” This statement suggests that some parents are now in conflict regarding their ability to exercise parental rights to proceed with the lawsuit.
Among the members of NewJeans, two are still minors: Hyein and Haerin. It is reported that a disagreement among the parents of one of the minors over the issue of terminating the exclusive contract has led to a family court decision. This is the first indication that the parents are divided over how to proceed with the lawsuit.
Earlier, on March 7th, 2025, during a hearing on the provisional injunction to secure the agency’s position, similar issues were raised. The court indicated that the matter of the parents’ rights needed to be addressed before proceeding with the case, as there were concerns about the validity of the power of attorney.
Typically, when dealing with minors, both parents must jointly represent the child’s interests. The lack of agreement between the parents regarding the contract termination suggests that further legal intervention may be required to resolve this dispute.
The legal representatives of NewJeans indicated that a conclusion from the family court was expected soon, with a final resolution anticipated in the following week. However, the court noted that there had been no correction made to the issue of the power of attorney, signaling that the parents had not yet reached an agreement on how to proceed with the contract termination.
Despite these challenges, the court proceedings on April 3rd indicated that the parent who opposed the lawsuit had limited influence, and the case would proceed in alignment with the parent who supported the contract termination.
NewJeans’ parents have consistently argued via social media and public statements that ADOR has failed to uphold its contractual duties, leading to the termination of the contract. They further asserted that they have no obligation or right to manage or interfere with their children’s activities. However, with the recent developments and the court’s decision to accept ADOR’s injunction to stop NewJeans’ activities, it seems that even within the parents’ group, there are now cracks in the previously united front, suggesting that the dispute may take a new direction in the coming days.
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