[Exclusive]Conclusion after 1,061 days… CEO Jeon Hong-jun of Fifty Fiftty lawsuit: “It was difficult due to the sense of injustice” [Direct Interview]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

• “If the result is favorable, criminal lawsuits against two individuals, including CEO Ahn Seong-il of Doggribus, are also planned to proceed”

“This is the first-instance civil ruling after three years.”

Jeon Hong-jun, CEO of Attraxt, briefly expressed his feelings ahead of the first-instance verdict in the civil lawsuit he had with former K-pop girl group Fifty Fiftty members Sana, Aroha, and Arin, which has been pending for 1,061 days.

CEO Jeon Hong-jun told StarNews on the 8th, ahead of the judgment pronouncement date for the damages claim lawsuit worth approximately 13 billion won filed by Attraxt against a total of 12 people including Sana, Aroha, and Arin, saying, “It has been a long time,” and adding, “I found it mentally difficult to endure due to the sense of injustice.”

He further expressed gratitude for the many supports directed at him, stating, “If the civil lawsuit result is favorable, we plan to proceed with criminal lawsuits against two individuals, including CEO Ahn Seong-il of Doggribus and Director Baek Jin-sil. Legal responses regarding the three members and their six parents will be discussed with lawyers later.”

In addition, CEO Jeon Hong-jun also conveyed that he plans to proceed with other damages claim lawsuits related to this incident.

The 61st Civil Division (Collegial) (D) of the Seoul Central District Court is scheduled to hold the judgment pronouncement date on the 13th for the damages claim lawsuit worth approximately 13 billion won filed by Attraxt against a total of 12 people including Sana, Aroha, and Arin.

The beginning of this lawsuit dates back to June 2023. Fifty Fiftty, which had set a record for the shortest time to reach the Billboard Hot 100 chart in K-pop history with their hit song “Cupid,” caused a stir on June 28, 2023, when members announced through legal representatives that they had filed an application for an injunction suspending the exclusive contract with Attraxt at the Seoul Central District Court on June 19, and that the trial is currently in progress. Prior to this, Attraxt had surprised everyone by announcing that the members were undergoing surgical treatment due to deteriorating health and would suspend activities, while claiming, “An external force was identified that approached our artists during this period to induce them to violate their exclusive contracts with us.”

In response, CEO Jeon Hong-jun stated, “I want reconciliation with the members,” and constantly hinted that they could resume activities at any time. However, the members remained silent for two months behind their families and lawyers, taking a strong stance by saying, “If we don’t do music activities, so be it, but we will absolutely not return.” The members later expressed their feelings in a handwritten letter 60 days after declaring their separation from Attraxt last August, stating, “Through this incident, I want things that were forced in the wrong way in our relationship with the agency to be corrected.”

However, the 50th Civil Division of the Seoul Central District Court rejected their application for an injunction suspending the exclusive contract against Attraxt, ruling that it is difficult to definitively state a violation of the obligation to provide settlement materials, that violations of health management and consideration obligations are not sufficiently proven, and that the termination of business with Doggribus does not constitute a violation of the exclusive contract.

Nevertheless, Sana, Arin, and Aroha continued to push forward with legal responses. Even after the dismissal of their appeal for retrial, they claimed, “Since both parties have declared termination of the contract, it can be said that the exclusive contract has been terminated, and the reason to contest the injunction due to changed circumstances has disappeared. We will contest the essence of this case in the main lawsuit.” They added, “We prepared content to contest in the appeal court, but submission was delayed due to reasons such as a change in the judicial panel, partial withdrawal of the appeal, and termination notice from the agency, at which point the (dismissal) decision was made. The determination that issues regarding the settlement structure for record and music revenue, non-disclosure of details and items used for Fifty Fiftty production out of advances paid by music distributors, and whether the representative director of the debtor committed breach of trust should be judged in the main lawsuit remains the same.”

They also filed a counterclaim in the 13 billion won damages claim lawsuit against Attraxt, explaining, “The purpose of the counterclaim is not simply for the three members to receive part of the unsettled settlement funds. We judged it important and urgently necessary to clearly organize the expenditure details related to each member’s past entertainment activities before determining the validity of the 13 billion won damages claimed by Attraxt.” They continued, “This counterclaim was filed after the law firm in charge conducted additional review following the rejection of our application for an injunction suspending the exclusive contract against Attraxt, as overall revenue details were confirmed and related procedures were initiated.” They claimed, “To date, the three members are proceeding with the relevant lawsuits without having received any transparent settlement details from Attraxt.”

Meanwhile, Attraxt also received a partial victory in the damages claim lawsuit filed against Doggribus. Previously, the 33rd Civil Collegial Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Choi Jong-jin) ruled for a partial victory in the damages claim lawsuit filed by Attraxt against Doggribus, CEO Ahn Seong-il, and Director Baek Jin-sil, stating, “Doggribus and CEO Ahn shall jointly pay 499.5 million won to Attraxt.”

Attraxt announced, “We are simultaneously proceeding with a 13 billion won damages claim lawsuit against the three former members Sana, Arin, and Aroha who left the team without permission due to the tampering incident, their parents, Doggribus, CEO Ahn Seong-il, and Director Baek Jin-sil, as well as a damages claim lawsuit worth approximately 20 billion won filed against Warner Music Korea and Clayton Jin (Jin Seung-young).”

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original