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BELIFT LAB claims 2 billion KRW in damages from Min Hee Jin for accusing ILLIT of plagiarizing NewJeans’ concept; trial to start in Jan 2025
Will Min Hee Jin have to pay 2 billion KRW in damages to BELIFT LAB for accusing ILLIT of copying NewJeans’ concept? Read on to know what we know so far.
When the Min Hee Jin vs HYBE feud first unfolded, the former ADOR CEO claimed that ILLIT, a new girl group by BELIFT LAB has been copying NewJeans’ concept. Although the agency refuted the accusations many times, she kept firm with her claims. BELIFT LAB later filed a defamation lawsuit against Min Hee Jin and some updates regarding the legal proceedings have been unveiled recently.
According to reports on November 18, BELIFT LAB has claimed 2 billion KRW in damages from Min Hee Jin for defaming ILLIT with plagiarism accusations. The 12th Civil Division of the Seoul Western District Court will handle the arguments and the first hearing is scheduled for January 10, 2025.
Min Hee Jin raised the accusations a few months back at the Seoul Central District Court during an injunction hearing as part of her public feud with HYBE. Her legal team even presented a testimony by a HYBE informant. The employee stated that the creative director of ILLIT allegedly received documents about NewJeans’ planning during the time of ILLIT’s conceptualization.
The former ADOR CEO lamented the alleged similarities between the two girl groups’ concepts, fueling the situation. However, BELIFT LAB, who houses ILLIT completely dismissed her claims, stating that Min Hee Jin used a rookie girl group as a ‘scapegoat’ for her own gain in the feud with HYBE.
In response, she held a press conference on April 25, reiterating the allegations and laying out her concerns about the matter. She stated, “I’m not attacking ILLT, but merely pointing out that the problem lies with the adults involved.”
Kim Tae Ho, the CEO of the HYBE subsidiary countered her statement saying that she wouldn’t have brought up the allegations unnecessarily if she believed that the artists did nothing wrong.
Despite going back and forth, the two sides didn’t come to an agreement and the matter wasn’t resolved at all. In June, ILLIT’s agency filed a defamation lawsuit against Min Hee Jin, explaining that the conceptualization and the branding strategy for their new girl group were finalized by July 21, 2023, whereas the alleged document mentioned by the informant arrived two months later as per the claims, making it impossible for them to copy NewJeans.
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