HYBE And ILLIT’s Lawsuit Win Backfires, Strengthening NewJeans’ Case

HYBE scored a partial win in its defamation lawsuit against a YouTuber who accused ILLIT of copying NewJeans choreography.

The court ruled the YouTuber damaged HYBE’s reputation by posting about 30 videos with unverified plagiarism claims. Some videos reached millions of views. The YouTuber was ordered to pay ₩15 million KRW (about $9,940 USD) in damages.

This amount is far less than the ₩300 million KRW (about $199,000 USD) HYBE originally demanded.

Importantly, the court found no clear evidence proving the plagiarism claims. It said the accusations lacked sufficient proof, leading to the defamation ruling. The decision is final, with no appeals from either side.

Fans quickly reacted online, questioning what the ruling really means. Many feel that HYBE’s partial win hints at the ongoing legal battles involving NewJeans and Min Hee Jin.

The fact that a random YouTuber who doesn’t have much evidence like official internal documents, planning files, and other materials still partially won says a lot about how visible the plagiarism is
— gabii°• (@phamiiyy)

Others pointed out the timing. The ruling happened in February but was only publicized recently. This sparked speculation that HYBE might be trying to control the narrative amid its ongoing conflict with Min Hee Jin.

FYI, this ruling is from February… before MHJ’s landslide win against HYBE in the shareholder agreement and put-option lawsuits. A lot has changed since then, and the broader context surrounding all of this has shifted significantly.
The question that needs to be asked is why…
— 1tokki (@juantokki)

Fans also noted that related legal cases are still unresolved. ADOR’s lawsuit against Danielle gave NewJeans fans hope after the court recently rejected HYBE’s sublabel’s claims.

You can read more about that case below.

ADOR Suffers Rejection By Court During NewJeans’ Danielle Lawsuit