On February 5, 2015, S.M. Entertainment released an official statement that stated that Luhan had left the EXO without permission and announced that the company had filed lawsuits against not only Luhan but also the advertisers who used it as a spokesperson. According to Chinese entertainment source Sina Entertainment, a representative of Luhan issued an official statement on February 6 on allegations made in the lawsuit filed against S.M. Entertainment. The representative said: "We are launching this official statement in order to clarify the truth and protect the reputation of Luhan. SM filed a lawsuit for the Shanghai courts, claiming that 'Luhan has been participating in activities in China without permission.' However, according to the rules of jurisdiction, SM has no right to bring a lawsuit over [Luhan's] exclusive contract to a Chinese court. In fact, the courts do not have jurisdiction in Shanghai [on this matter]." He continues: "The results of [our] investigation show that SM sued an advertiser affiliated with Luhan for copyright infringement. This does not correspond with the reasons given for their actions [SM]. The statement that SM issued through the press is misleading. The SM is aware of the reasons behind the filing [of its annulment] of its [Luhan] exclusive contract, but in its statement, the company said that luhan was unethical when leaving the company without any legitimate reason. "To say that he [Luhan] left EXO for no reason other than his own gain "is a malicious attempt to defame Luhan." The statement concludes with: "In order to protect your legitimate rights and interests, we will take legal action against all the full reports Which defame Luhan's reputation."