Former members of K-pop boy group EXO Kris (left) and Luhan. (OSEN/Yonhap)

K-pop record label SM Entertainment has objected to a Seoul court’s decision to mediate differences between the K-pop agency and two artists Kris and Luhan, former members of EXO, as both have failed to come to an agreement.

The Seoul court decided to enforce the “compulsory arbitration” system in mid-May, follows a months-long legal battle in which both parties failed to sort out their differences.

The justice department forcibly lays down conditions for agreement under the system, which is used as a last resort in stalemate cases.

SM said that they could not accept the enforced mediation and filed an objection at the Seoul Central District Court on Thursday, but declined to disclose the reasons. Kris and Luhan did not react to the proceedings.

Legal sources have said that the court will nonetheless likely push ahead with the mediation method.

Last year, Chinese singers Kris and Luhan filed lawsuits to terminate their contracts with SM in May and November respectively, citing individual rights violations through discrimination, artist mismanagement and inadequate financial compensation.

Kris and Luhan, formerly members of the Chinese-Korean boy group EXO, said that SM had often sidestepped opportunities for EXO’s Chinese members and instead conferred promotional activities and financial support to its Korean members.

SM said that Kris and Luhan lacked sufficient grounds to take legal action and that they had selfishly sought to elevate their own celebrity status at the expense of other parties involved.

By Yoon Sarah (sarah356@heraldcorp.com)

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