Many fans have questioned why a lawyer would agree to the show’s intense contract.

MAFS’ Jacqui Burfoot has explained why she felt comfortable signing the show’s intense contract with her legal background. Photos: Channel Nine

Married At First Sight’s Jacqui Burfoot has made it pretty clear both on the show and social media that she’s a lawyer. The 29-year-old has a double degree in law and finance with first-class honours in law and has worked in civil litigation, investment law, venture capital and legal recruitment in both New Zealand and Australia.

It’s because of her impressive resumé and extensive legal background that many fans have questioned why she would feel comfortable signing the infamous MAFS contract. Participants are required to sign an iron-clad document agreeing to be portrayed however producers want, which ultimately prevents networks from being sued over a ‘bad edit’.

Speaking with Yahoo Lifestyle about her decision to sign up for the reality show, Jacqui says she “relied on the laws that we’re all afforded as human beings” to trust that she would be taken care of.

“I know what it’s like with contracts. Often employers will try and contract out of minimum requirements and standards. Even retailers do it – they’ll specify no returns, but there’s consumer guarantees law that you can’t actually contract out of,” she details.

“It’s the same with reality TV stars. There are minimum standards, there’s duties of care, there’s criminal law, there’s work and safety laws. All of these frameworks exist around a contract, and a contract can’t get them out of criminal liability or civil liability for a lot of these very serious civil and criminal crimes. So I knew that at the very least, they’d have a duty of care to take care of me and that if I suffered some kind of injustice, I could fall on my legal rights.”

Jacqui says she knew she could fall on her legal rights if she ‘suffered some kind of injustice’. Photo: Channel Nine

Why she isn’t afraid to speak out about MAFS

Jacqui shares that she isn’t afraid to speak out against Channel Nine and the show’s production company EndemolShine Australia because “there are laws in place to protect people” and she is “standing on [her] legal rights”.

“Obviously, I’m a lawyer, I am educated and I know that just because I signed a contract, it doesn’t mean they can breach human rights,” she says. “Everything’s been documented so I’ve got nothing to worry about. I’m in a fortunate position where there was a film crew documenting everything 24/7.

“I did do everything I possibly could. I did seek psychological support and reported my mental health to the team of professionals and that’s all been recorded. It’s not going to be a ‘he said, she said’ situation because there’s actual footage of it.”

Jacqui spills on her post-show plans

With this year’s season of MAFS approaching its end, Jacqui reveals there are a lot of things she’s hoping to achieve post-show.

“I guess I’ve got my eyes set on $500 million and I’m not going to stop until I get there,” she laughs, referring to the goal she mentioned in her confessions letter. “I’m passionate about business and the only reason why I’d go on another TV show is to restore my character and reputation.

“I’d love to be funny. I hope to be a bit of a Sophie Monk on social media because I find her very funny and I feel like we’ve got a similar sense of humour. So she is my role model now, and I’d love to be like her one day.”

She also adds that she plans to “stick around” on social media and become an “advocate for what’s right and wrong in the world”.

“I’m not here to be an influencer, I really don’t care about influencing people,” she remarks. “I actually would prefer to inform them about stuff like their rights and help people. I’m also ready, obviously, to settle down and start a family. So I guess we’ll see what happens.”