[Star News Reporter Yoon Sang-geun]
Former members of girl group LOONA Jeon Heejin, Kim Lip (Kim Jungeun), Jeong Jinsol, and Choerry (Choi Yerim) have won their exclusive contract lawsuit against their previous agency Blockberry Creative (henceforth Blockberry).
On the decision date, the 11th Civil Suits Division (Na) of the Seoul North District Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in the civil suit filed by Jeon Heejin, Kim Lip, Jeong Jinsol, and Choerry against Blockberry to confirm the nonexistence of exclusive contract effect valued around 200 million won.
This lawsuit was filed with the court in March 2023, and the decision date was initially set without any hearings due to Blockberry’s lack of response. However, the company submitted a late response, and the first hearings began in December 2023. Hearings were concluded after two additional occurrences.
These members had already won injunctions in a lawsuit to suspend the exclusive contract’s effect, freeing them from any limitations on entertainment activities.
These four members all made a new home at Modhaus alongside the lawsuit filing and debuted as the girl group ARTMS, heralding a new beginning. ARTMS was reformed as a five-member group including these four members plus Haseul who also promoted as a LOONA member. After solo and unit activities beginning with Kim Lip, Jinsoul, and Choerry’s Odd Eye Circle, they released the first full album Dall which is garnering distinctive achievements such as 120,000 first-week album sales and ranking at #1 on the Billboard Top New Artist Album chart.
LOONA debuted as a 12-member group in 2018. But ripples were made last year* when member Chuu conflicted against Blockberry over profit sharing, and the group practically entered a disbandment process when other members also filed for suspension of exclusive contract effect against Blockberry. Chuu has won both the initial and appellate rulings of her exclusive contract lawsuit, but with Blockberry refusing to acknowledge the ruling, she is currently awaiting a Supreme Court decision.
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