Married At First Sight bride Jacqui Burfoot made an appearance at Campbelltown Local Court on Tuesday after her former TV groom Ryan Donnelly applied for an Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) against her.
Burfoot, 29, who is living in Tasmania, was seen arriving at the Sydney courthouse with her new fiancé Clint Rice while a bodyguard walked behind them.
She wore a brown coat and boots as she huddled up to Rice under an umbrella after arriving in a prestige-hire car.
This was the first time Burfoot came face-to-face with Donnelly since filming for MAFS wrapped in November last year.
She did not say anything to reporters about the allegations outside court after the matter was adjourned.
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Jacqui Burfoot and Clint Rice arrived at Sydney’s Campbelltown Local Court on Tuesday with a bodyguard for the AVO hearing
Burfoot, 29, who is living in Tasmania, was seen arriving at the NSW courthouse with her new fiancé Clint Rice while a bodyguard followed them
Her barrister, Marcia Edwards, said it would be prejudicial for her to speak.
Later, Donnelly’s lawyer Daniel Wakim said his client still sought protection and he would talk with Burfoot’s lawyers about resolving the matter.
‘We’re yet to see what the respondent has to put on in relation to my client’s fears,’ he said.
Donnelly told reporters he had found it very difficult emotionally, claiming his former screen wife posted about him ‘almost incessantly’.
He said he had never thought his on-screen marriage would turn out this way.
‘It wasn’t the adventure I had planned,’ he told reporters.
‘I wanted to have this amazing chapter of my life and have a comfortable circle, and leave amicably and as friends.’
The matter will return to court on July 29.
This was the first time Burfoot came face-to-face with her former TV groom Ryan Donnelly (pictured) since filming for MAFS wrapped in November last year
Donnelly and Burfoot were paired together in the most recent season of the hit reality TV series but chose to separate during an insult-laden Final Vows ceremony.
Their bickering went from the small screen to the courtroom when Burfoot was granted an interim restraining order in Tasmania, preventing Donnelly from talking about her on social media.
Donnelly retaliated by applying for an apprehended domestic violence order against Burfoot, which first came before Sydney‘s Campbelltown Local Court in April.
Donnelly arrived at court but Burfoot sent an email opposing the restraining order.
Magistrate Shane McAnulty told the court he was unwilling to grant the order in her absence and asked the parties to prepare submissions before the matter returned to court on June 24.
The ex-reality TV star told reporters at the time, along with his representative Shirin Razi from Azadi Lawyers, that he suffered ‘a lot of harm’ and received menacing messages as a result of ‘malicious’ claims Burfoot made about him online.
‘An individual has tried to destroy my life, my potential for career options, collaborations… with false allegations, so men can be victims as well,’ he said outside the courthouse, adding that he ‘was very afraid’ at one point.
He said he thought the proceedings were a valuable use of the court’s time and believed he would ‘have an extremely strong case’ for defamation action against his on-screen wife.
Following court, Donnelly took to Instagram to say he was ‘very pleased with today’s outcome’
Burfoot appeared glum as she answered questions outside court
The TV groom refused to comment on whether he would stop posting about Burfoot or withdraw from social media completely, noting MAFS is a ‘program that can do wonderful things for people’.
In court documents seen by The Daily Telegraph, Donnelly claimed he had received ‘horrible messages’ from followers as a result of claims Burfoot had made about him online.
‘[Donnelly] states the defendant has publicly accused him of domestic violence, sexual harassment, that he is a danger to women and that she is doing a ‘public service to Australia’,’ the documents read.
‘Due to [Burfoot’s] followers online, which (exceed) 100,000 people… Donnelly is truly scared of what may happen next, as he has received numerous horrible messages directly from people who have viewed her content.’
‘Donnelly is taking this seriously, he’s engaged a lawyer to represent him in these proceedings,’ legal representative Ms Razi told the publication.
‘All he wants is for her to leave him alone and stop the online slander.’
