Update: HB Entertainment And Ku Hye Sun's Reps Release Conflicting Statements About Her Contract Termination

Updated April 30 KST:

Ku Hye Sun’s legal representative has responded to HB Entertainment’s April 29 claims about the recent decision made by the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board over her exclusive contract with the agency.

The April 30 statement from LIWU Law Group is as follows:

As a representative of actor and director Ku Hye Sun, our law firm is releasing an official statement regarding her recent change of agency and the arbitral award.

The reason we are releasing this official statement is that Ku Hye Sun’s departure from her agency HB Entertainment has been reported because of the change to her profile photo and agency. In addition, her former agency released an official statement, however there were parts of this that were false and we are aiming to correct them.

Firstly, we inform you of the acceptance of Ku Hye Sun’s request for arbitration to confirm that her exclusive contract with her former agency was invalid, and we inform you that we received the arbitral award from the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board on April 22, 2020 and that Ku Hye Sun won the case.

Next, her former agency stated that her exclusive contract has been terminated subject to her paying fixed damages, however this is not true. Namely, after Ku Hye Sun filed a request for arbitration to confirm that her exclusive contract was invalid and during the arbitration process, towards the end of the process her former agency requested compensation for damages of the sizeable amount of 330 million won [approximately $272,000]. However, the majority of that was dismissed and the verdict was reached that she should pay 35 million won [approximately $29,000]. As the amount was reduced after taking into consideration her former agency’s mistake, it could be seen as her agency losing the case to a degree of close to 90 percent, in comparison to the amount they’d sought.

Also, Ku Hye Sun could not at all understand or accept the reason that the 35 million won amount mentioned above was accepted, and so we were preparing a request for an additional arbitral award in accordance with arbitration law, and in addition, we were preparing a request for arbitration for the payment of damages due to her former agency’s breach of her exclusive contract, which was a separate issue from the invalidity of her exclusive contract. Their statement and the report came out during this time, which we think of as very unfortunate.

Once again, we inform you that in regard to Ku Hye Sun’s exclusive contract with her former agency, Ku Hye Sun’s request for arbitration was accepted and therefore it has come to an end, and this is not subject to Ku Hye Sun paying damages.

We also inform you that the request for an additional arbitral award and the separate request for arbitration will be received and carried out in early May.

Koo Hye Sun shared the beginning of the statement on her Instagram with the caption, “I won the case and HB Entertainment lost.^^”

https://www.instagram.com/p/B_ldDr6BjB2/

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Original Article:

HB Entertainment has made an announcement regarding Ku Hye Sun’s request for the termination of her contract with the agency.

Ku Hye Sun signed with her husband Ahn Jae Hyun’s agency HB Entertainment in June 2019. Following the news last August of Ku Hye Sun and Ahn Jae Hyun’s divorce plans, Ku Hye Sun shared her desire to end her contract with their agency. On April 29, Ku Hye Sun’s profile on a portal site was changed to use a new photo and her agency now reads “Ku Hye Sun Film.”

That day, HB Entertainment released the following statement:

Hello. This is HB Entertainment.

We are writing to inform you that our company’s exclusive contract with Ku Hye Sun has been terminated.

Ku Hye Sun has asked our company for the termination of her exclusive contract, and on September 11, 2019, she filed an application for arbitration with the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board.

HB Entertainment decided that we could no longer continue to maintain our relationship with her as an actress under our agency due to her breach of contract and our loss of trust in Ku Hye Sun, and so we filed a counter application to obtain compensation for damages.

According to the arbitral award on April 21, 2020, the claims made by Ku Hye Sun of reasons imputable to the company and reasons for termination were not accepted, and the termination of her contract was accepted subject to Ku Hye Sun paying HB Entertainment for fixed damages.

We ask for your understanding as we cannot provide details about the arbitration since the process was carried out in private.

HB Entertainment was not able to mention the dispute with our agency’s actor when the arbitration was ongoing, and we are informing you of this fact after the arbitral award, which is as effective as a final ruling, has been shared.

Social media posts and malicious comments that are based on false information about this case are subject to criminal punishment.

Thank you.

Ku Hye Sun soon after wrote on Instagram, “Since there was something omitted from the judgment, a reassessment is ongoing. So please don’t worry too much. Sleep well, everyone.”

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