Joseph A. Hayden, Jr. Named to InsiderNJ’s 2022 Insider 100: Policymakers Power List
Joseph A. Hayden, Co-Chair of the Criminal Defense & Governmental and Internal Investigations practice at Pashman Stein Walder Hayden, was named No. 57 on InsiderNJ’s 2022 Insider 100: Policymakers Power List. InsiderNJ, which publishes the list, describes it as a collective of serious-minded and substantive individuals dedicated, finally, to people’s happiness in the state who labor for the public good in New Jersey politics. In recognizing Hayden, InsiderNJ stated:
We’re biased – Hayden serves as InsiderNJ’s legal adviser – but the celebrated criminal defense attorney possesses one of the best legal minds in the state, and has the moral foundation to match. During the Civil Rights era, Hayden drove down to Alabama to march at the side of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
About Joseph A. Hayden, Jr.
Hayden’s legal career spans over five decades. Most recently, Hayden was awarded the 2020 Daniel J. O'Hern Award by the New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law. Click here to view the video of Hayden’s remarks accepting this award. To learn more about Hayden Hayden's background and experience in his own words, click here to listen to "50-year Career as a Criminal Law Attorney" on The Bold Sidebar Podcast.
Hayden began his legal career as a law clerk to the Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court, and was then appointed deputy attorney general in the Organized Crime and Special Prosecution Section of the Division of Criminal Justice. As deputy attorney general, Hayden tried the first wiretap case brought by the state of New Jersey. An esteemed leader of the criminal defense bar, Hayden was the founder and first president of the Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers of New Jersey (ACDLNJ), in 1985.
Hayden has received accolades and honors for his excellence in trial work. He received the Lawrence A. Whipple Award for Professional Excellence from the ACDLNJ, and, in 2011, received the Rutgers University School of Law-Newark’s Distinguished Alumnus Award. In 2004, Hayden was named Professional Lawyer of the Year in the area of Criminal Law by the New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law. He is also the recipient of the Trial Bar Award for Professional Excellence from the Trial Attorneys of New Jersey, an organization of civil litigators. In 2014, Hayden received the coveted Justice William J. Brennan Award from the Association of the Federal Bar of New Jersey, in recognition of his contributions to the profession.
Although criminal defense is a significant part of Hayden’s practice, he has also been substantially involved in complex civil litigation in state and federal courts, serving as either trial counsel or local counsel. In Hayden's view, a trial is a trial – whether it involves a civil or criminal matter. While he relishes his work on complex, high-profile trials, Hayden has said that some of his most significant victories were those in which a client was being investigated for wrongdoing but, thanks to his representation, was never charged or civil litigation was never brought.
Hayden frequently tries cases that attract national and regional media coverage. He tried the first case in New Jersey with live television coverage by a major network and has tried four other cases with live TV cameras in the courtroom. He has been involved in such high-profile cases as the trial of a former professional basketball star and successfully represented a former Bergen County Democratic Chairman in a federal prosecution. In addition, Hayden and the firm were appointed special counsel to the General Assembly in connection with the Legislative Select Oversight Committee, which conducted an extensive investigation of the hiring practices of the transition and office of Governor Philip Murphy arising out of allegations of sexual assault during the campaign.
A lecturer to the bench and bar on the topic of advocacy and trial techniques in high-profile cases, Hayden is often asked to provide analysis of legal issues in print, online and broadcast media nationwide. He serves as a trustee for the New Jersey Reentry Services Commission, which provides support services for incarcerated persons, and as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Integrity House, a prominent New Jersey addiction and mental health treatment facility based in Newark, New Jersey. Hayden was profiled on PolitickerNJ.com for his involvement from the 1960s to the present in the civil rights movement and the Selma to Montgomery march in 1965.
To view the full 2022 Insider 100: Policymakers Power List, click here.