IVE’s Wonyoung becomes the fourth idol, after BTS's V, Jungkook, and Kang Daniel, to win a lawsuit against Sojang

A case that has been going on since 2022 finally saw its culmination as IVE’s Jang Wonyoung won a case against a popular online channel called Sojang. The idol and her management agency had filed a defamation lawsuit against the channel, and on May 4, the court ruled in their favor and even ordered the operator of the account to pay around 50 million KRW in damages.

Wonyoung becomes the third artist to win such a legal case after BTS’ Jungkook and V.

Wonyoung wins a defamation lawsuit against the Sojang online channel

The lawsuit was filed in 2022, claiming that the content on Sojang’s online channel was false, malicious, and defamatory and amounted to a personal attack against the artist. On June 4, the Seoul Central District Court delivered the verdict in favor of Wonyoung; according to Korea JoongAng Daily, Judge Choi Mi Young of the court's 50th Civil Division overlooked the recent trial.The court ordered the Sojang operator to issue 50 million KRW in damages to Wonyoung and her agency. They had initially sought double the amount; however, the court reduced the amount, citing the number of videos, their nature, and content.

About the Sojang online streaming channel

The Sojang channel was popularly known to post regular defamatory content against various K-pop idols and other Korean celebrities. Artists like Kang Daniel, Jungkook, and V of BTS, as well as IVE’s Wonyoung, had filed for defamatory lawsuits against the operator.

BTS's Jungkook, V, and Kang Daniel also won their respective lawsuits against the channel operator

Previously, both Jungkook and V from BTS won their respective lawsuits against Sojang in February 2025. The court ruled that the operator of the channel would have to pay Jungkook 15 million KRW and 10 million KRW to V. Above that, the court also ordered that they pay BTS’ managing agency a total of 51 million KRW in damages.Other than that, the court ruled in favor of Kang Daniel back in November last year and ordered the operator of the Sojang channel to pay the artist a total of 30 million KRW in fines for posting damaging and malicious content.