Joy-Anna Duggar’s Husband Austin Forsyth Says Jim Bob Had Courting Checklist: ‘Not Any of His Business’

Joy-Anna Forsyth’s (née Duggar) husband, Austin Forsyth, has shared insight into the courting checklist that father-in-law Jim Bob Duggar gave to his daughters’ suitors.

“That was pretty early on in our conversations where he gave me that list and wanted me to fill it out. And man, I think the questions in the list, a lot of them were good,” Austin, 30, said during his and Joy-Anna’s appearance on the “Unplanned” podcast with Matt and Abby Howard on Wednesday, October 16. “Just figuring out where somebody is with their religious beliefs and finances and family planning and just different stuff like that.”

While the contractor did agree with some of the questions that Jim Bob, 59, asked on the list, Austin found that “maybe some of it” was “not any of” his would-be father-in-law’s “business.”

“But I mean, there’s like, ‘Have you ever, you know, been arrested?’ ‘Have you ever… whatever?’ And so he knew all that. … He knew a lot of that kind of stuff,” Austin continued.

The process of courtship, or getting to know a potential romantic partner before entering a marriage, has been practiced by the Duggars for years. According to the family’s website, “courtship seeks to avoid many of the pitfalls that often exist in dating relationships. Courtship is a commitment to honor and protect both individuals in the process of getting to know one another. … Family and mentors often play a significant role in helping a man or woman identify characteristics and traits of a potential partner that are important to know and consider before deciding to get married.”

Abby, 25, wondered how many men had been disqualified from courtship because of the courtship questionnaire.

“See, that’s where I’m like, I don’t know,” Joy-Anna, 26, replied. “My parents have said … you know, we’re gonna have these … the way we parent … we want to be kind of a stepping stool for y’all and ya’ll figure out how to do it better. I appreciate the idea behind it. I think I would tweak it some.”

She continued, “Because we grew up on TV, people know our standards are out there, what we allow, what we don’t allow, what, at least my dad allows. … I feel like any guy could have come in and filled out the questionnaire and answered all the right questions and been like, ‘Oh yeah, you’re good to go!’”

Austin and Joy-Anna announced their courtship in November 2016, when the Duggar daughter was 18 years old. However, they had known each other since childhood. Elsewhere on the podcast, the mom of three said that she met her then-future husband when she was just 4 years old and he was 8 years old.

“I have no recollection of that, obviously, but his family had moved from Texas at the time and moved to Arkansas and started coming to my family’s church. And then we kind of saw each other on and off,” Joy-Anna explained.

Austin said they attended the same “homeschool events” growing up and saw each other throughout the year. However, Joy-Anna added that their meetings increased once they started driving because Austin would visit the Duggar compound to play flag football with her brothers. Soon enough, Joy-Anna developed a crush, but Austin was interested in dating another girl at the time.

Though Austin’s romance with the other girl didn’t work out, Joy-Anna still wasn’t sure that she’d end up with him, as she revealed that her parents didn’t like him as a potential match for her at first.

“I went through a little bit of a rebellious time for several years,” Austin said, with his wife noting that he was a “wild card” because he listened to secular music and “was hanging out with the wrong crowd.”

Eventually, however, Austin convinced Jim Bob to let him start a courtship with Joy-Anna. The couple tied the knot in May 2017 and went on to welcome three children — son Gideon, daughter Evelyn and son Gunner.