Actress Goo Hye-sun plans to file an appeal against her former agency, HB Entertainment, over unpaid appearance fees.

Law firm Liu, acting as Goo Hye-sun's legal representative, explained the situation on June 19th. "Goo Hye-sun had a dispute with her previous agency over an exclusive contract, and an arbitration decision accepting Goo's termination of the contract and its non-existence had been issued," they said. "However, the arbitration panel ruled that Goo had to compensate part of the cost of setting up the former agency's YouTube channel, which Goo has sincerely complied with. Goo's appearance on the former agency's 'Chibi Chibi' YouTube channel happened before the exclusive contract was signed, and Goo was misled by the agency's CEO into appearing without receiving a fee."

The law firm added, "If Goo is burdened with both the production costs and not receiving an appearance fee, it undermines the very purpose of the arbitration decision. Feeling very wronged, Goo filed a separate lawsuit at the end of 2020 after the arbitration ruling."

Especially noteworthy is that, "After about two and a half years of proceedings, the court acknowledged in its judgment that the lawsuit filed by Goo does not go against the arbitration decision and is not a subject of dispute in the exclusive contract. Yet, despite acknowledging the revenue-sharing agreement between Goo and the former agency, the court did not rule on the revenue distribution, while still stating that the agreement is still in effect. It is our belief that this judgement is wrong."

They argued that if the profit-sharing agreement is valid, profit should be distributed. And if the profit-sharing agreement is terminated, unpaid appearance fees should be paid.

In response, Goo Hye-sun said, "I will soon appeal the first instance judgment. There must be a warning against the former agency's strong-arm tactics of not paying appearance fees. This unfair behavior of burdening the actors with production costs, seizing copyright of the content, and taking all the profits must be rectified."

Previously, HB Entertainment said, "On June 15, 2023, the Seoul Central District Court rejected all of the plaintiff's (Goo Hye-sun) unfounded claims."

● Here is the full official statement from Goo Hye-sun's side:

We would like to clarify Goo Hye-sun's position regarding her lawsuit about the unpaid appearance fee that was recently reported in the news.

As you well know, Goo Hye-sun had a dispute with her former agency over an exclusive contract, and an arbitration decision accepting Goo's termination of the contract and its non-existence had been issued.

However, the arbitration panel ruled that Goo had to compensate part of the cost of setting up the former agency's YouTube channel, and Goo complied sincerely. But Goo's appearance on the 'Chibi Chibi' YouTube channel of the former agency, HB Entertainment, happened before the exclusive contract was signed, and Goo was misled by the agency's CEO into appearing without receiving a fee.

If Goo is burdened with both the production costs and not receiving an appearance fee, as the arbitration decision stipulated, it distorts the original intent. Therefore, feeling very wronged, Goo filed a separate lawsuit at the end of 2020.

After about two and a half years of proceedings, the court acknowledged in its judgment that the lawsuit filed by Goo does not go against the arbitration decision and is not a subject of dispute in the exclusive contract.

However, despite acknowledging the revenue-sharing agreement between Goo and the former agency, the court did not rule on the revenue distribution, while still stating that the agreement is still in effect. This, we believe, is an error in judgment.

In essence, if the profit-sharing agreement is valid, profits should be distributed. If the profit-sharing agreement has ended, then unpaid appearance fees should be paid. This, we believe, is consistent with legal and equitable principles.

In response, Goo Hye-sun will soon appeal the first instance judgment, and insists that there must be a warning against the former agency's tactics of not paying appearance fees. Practices where actors are lured with profit distribution, only to have their appearance fees taken away, must be abolished. And the unfair practice of burdening actors with production costs, taking content copyright, and all profits, must be rectified. Goo Hye-sun aims to set things right through the appeal process.

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