Court Rules "Hook Must Pay Lee Seung-gi Additional 587 Million Won"

Lee Seung-gi and Hook Entertainment File Cross Lawsuits Over Debt
Hook Previously Paid 5.4 Billion KRW in Settlement Unilaterally

Singer and actor Lee Seung-gi won part of a civil lawsuit against his former agency Hook Entertainment (hereinafter 'Hook', now Chorokbaem Entertainment) and is set to receive 587 million KRW.

The Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 20 (Presiding Judge Lee Sera) announced on the 4th that in the lawsuit filed by Hook against Lee Seung-gi to confirm non-existence of debt, the court ruled, "Hook shall pay Lee Seung-gi 587 million KRW and delayed interest." Neither Lee Seung-gi nor Kwon Jin-young, CEO of Hook, appeared in court that day.

Singer and actor Lee Seung-gi. Yonhap News

Previously, Lee Seung-gi claimed that he had not received any settlement payments for music royalties from Hook, where he had been for 18 years since his debut, and sent a certified letter in November 2022. Along with this, Lee Seung-gi filed a complaint against Kwon Jin-young and other Hook officials on charges including violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (embezzlement in the course of business) and violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (fraud).

Subsequently, Hook unilaterally paid Lee Seung-gi approximately 5.4 billion KRW, calculated internally as settlement money, and filed a lawsuit to confirm non-existence of debt, intending to confirm that no further debts existed. However, Lee Seung-gi’s side filed a counterclaim against Hook, stating that there was no agreement on the settlement and that the amount of unpaid money was different from reality. During the lawsuit, Hook changed its stance, claiming that advertising revenue had been excessively settled and that Lee Seung-gi should return 900 million KRW of the settlement money he received back to Hook.

During the trial, Lee Seung-gi argued, "The music revenue from October 2009 to September 2022 is about 9.6 billion KRW," adding, "This amount excludes music revenue from the first five years after debut, from June 2004 to August 2009." Therefore, he maintained that he should receive more than 3 billion KRW additionally from Hook. Lee Seung-gi attended the trial in person and appealed, saying, "Although the rights of entertainers have improved compared to the past, they cannot fully rely on agencies," and "Considering that the standard contract period for rookies is seven years, it is practically impossible to raise issues within the statute of limitations. Please take care so that junior entertainers who debut at a young age like me do not suffer repeatedly due to settlement issues."