Min Hee-jin, CEO of Ooak Records, enters a press conference in Seoul’s Jongno District, Wednesday, calling for an end to ongoing legal disputes with Ador's parent company, HYBE Labels, and proposing to forgo a court-awarded 25.5 billion won payout if all related civil and criminal litigation is halted. Yonhap

Min Hee-jin, the creative force behind K-pop girl group NewJeans and current head of Ooak Records, called Wednesday for an end to the ongoing legal battle between herself and HYBE Labels, proposing that she forgo a 25.5 billion won ($18 million) payment if all civil and criminal litigation is dropped.

Speaking at a press conference in central Seoul, Min opened by reflecting on her Feb. 13 victory in a put-option lawsuit over a shareholder agreement dispute with HYBE.

“I express my respect and gratitude to the court for carefully examining the essence of this case over a long period of time and confirming it through its ruling,” she said. “It was truly a long tunnel.”

She said the court had determined that what she described as "sensational frames" surrounding the dispute were unfounded and recognized that her concerns about creative ethics were matters of managerial judgment.

Under the ruling, Min is entitled to approximately 25.5 billion won. However, she said she intends to exchange the monetary award "for another value."

The sum, she described, was "an amount one may never encounter in a lifetime." "But there is a value I desire more than a large sum of money," Min said.

She proposed that instead of receiving the payout, HYBE and its subsidiary, Ador, halt all ongoing civil and criminal proceedings against every party caught in the dispute, including NewJeans members, former Ador employees, external partner companies and even members of the group's fandom, known as Bunnies.

“I propose that instead of receiving the 25.5 billion won, all ongoing civil and criminal litigation be stopped and that this dispute come to an end,” she said. “This must end so that no more noise is created.”

The offer comes one day after a Seoul court granted HYBE's request to suspend enforcement of the judgment, temporarily blocking Min from collecting the award, pending appeal.

Source: Korea Times News