Korea Entertainment Producers’ Association (KEPA) Expresses Regret Over Min Hee-jin’s First-Trial Victory
In the first-trial ruling, the court found that Vice President Lee (name redacted) had negatively assessed the plan for members to leave, stating it would cause “too much damage on our side as well,” and determined that the phrase “in the event they claim to terminate the exclusive contract” appeared to be a hypothetical expression rather than an actual plan of action. The court further found that the primary thrust of the KakaoTalk messages was not the establishment of a new agency or preparation for an exclusive contract termination lawsuit, but rather the pursuit of a plan to acquire ADOR shares and seek a public listing, premised on the defendant’s consent and negotiation — ultimately concluding that “HYBE’s claim that plaintiff Min Hee-jin planned and carried out the poaching of NewJeans is without merit.”
Nevertheless, the Korea Entertainment Producers’ Association (KEPA) released an official statement characterizing the first-trial ruling as having granted a “get-out-of-jail-free card for tampering.”
The Korea Entertainment Producers’ Association (hereinafter “KEPA”) expresses deep regret over the first-trial ruling issued on February 12, 2026, regarding the validity and termination of the shareholders’ agreement between HYBE and former CEO Min Hee-jin.
KEPA views this matter not as a mere legal dispute between specific parties, but as a case that confirms the minimum order and principles upheld for decades in South Korea’s entertainment production industry.
KEPA has repeatedly warned that “when contracts and trust collapse, the foundation of the industry is shaken,” every time controversies over exclusive contract terminations and tampering allegations have arisen.
Our association is concerned that this ruling, far from alleviating anxiety in the field, will instead foster distrust. What matters more than whether the “betrayal was carried out” is the very “intent” to betray trust.
Production is a product of process, not results alone. Bringing a single artist team before the public requires years of time, astronomical capital, and the dedicated labor of countless staff. In this complex process, the most powerful safeguard is “trust” between partners. The moment that trust breaks down, the production environment collapses. Teams fracture, production crews burn out, and artists and fandoms are swept into a vortex of disputes.
This ruling sends a dangerous message — that even if tampering was plotted, one may be absolved if it was never carried out or was discovered before execution.
KEPA particularly notes that this ruling seriously undermines the “stability of investment contracts.” In the production field, investment goes beyond mere funding — it is a declaration of long-term trust in systems and human resources. The logic that a contractual relationship must be maintained even when the trust relationship has clearly broken down forces investors to make conservative judgments, which will inevitably lead to a contraction of investment across the entire entertainment industry.
When investment dries up, the first to suffer are creative talents and new projects. Jobs in the field will decline — to say nothing of small and mid-sized production companies — and the diversity and competitiveness that K-pop has built in the global market will inevitably diminish. It is precisely for these reasons that this ruling cannot be considered a decision made in the interests of producers.
Tampering destroys the field by the very attempt. Tampering is not a mere contract dispute — it is an act of usurping a shared achievement and a destructive act that uproots the industry’s trust from its very foundations.
KEPA strongly urges the judiciary to gain a deep understanding of the industry’s unique characteristics and the realities of the production field in future proceedings, including the appellate trial.
In ongoing relationships built on trust, when that trust has broken down, clear legal boundaries must be presented to rectify the situation.
Only then can producers once again trust in people, invest capital, and nurture the next generation of artists.
KEPA will continue to work tirelessly to establish a sound contractual order and protect the production system, so that the K-pop ecosystem can endure as a robust “system” without being shaken by the transgressions of any single individual.