The FIFTY FIFTY tampering saga is finally heading for a courtroom conclusion. The Seoul Central District Court’s 61st Civil Division will deliver its first-instance ruling on November 13 in the 13 billion won (approximately $9.6 million) damages lawsuit filed by agency ATTRAKT against former members Saena, Sio, and Aran, plus their parents and the production company The Givers.
Star News reported that the ruling, set for 2 p.m. on November 13, comes 1,061 days after the dispute first erupted in June 2023. ATTRAKT filed the suit on December 18, 2023, against 12 defendants.
The case stems from one of the biggest contract disputes in K-pop history. FIFTY FIFTY shot to global fame with “Cupid,” the fastest K-pop act to enter the Billboard Hot 100. On June 28, 2023, the members announced they had filed for a provisional injunction to suspend their exclusive contracts with ATTRAKT, saying the filing had been made on June 19.
The Seoul Central District Court dismissed the injunction request on August 28, 2023, ruling that it was difficult to conclude ATTRAKT had violated its duty to provide settlement records, and that there was insufficient evidence of a breach of its health care obligations. ATTRAKT terminated the contracts of Saena, Sio, and Aran in October 2023, while member Keena withdrew her appeal and returned to the agency. FIFTY FIFTY has since been reorganized as a five-member group.
The three former members also filed a counterclaim, arguing that the point was not simply to recover part of their settlement money but to clarify the expenditure records tied to their past activities. Hearings were held behind closed doors, and arguments concluded on September 18, 2026.
ATTRAKT has already scored a partial win in a related case. On January 15, 2026, the court ordered The Givers and Ahn Sung-il to jointly pay 499.5 million won to ATTRAKT, with Baek Jin-sil jointly liable for 449.5 million won of that amount. The agency is also pursuing a separate damages suit worth around 20 billion won against Warner Music Korea and Clayton Jin.
The three former members have since re-debuted as the group Ablume under Massive E&C, a label under IOK Company, with Ahn serving as their executive producer. The November 13 ruling will decide whether the three owe damages to ATTRAKT and, if so, how much, closing the first chapter of a dispute that became a test case for tampering in K-pop.
