Hayden Pace

Bio

Hayden serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Stokes Wagner nationally and as the Managing Shareholder of the San Francisco office. His practice focuses on representation and counseling for hotels, resorts, restaurants, and nightclubs. He has a particular passion for the operational and legal complexities of these hospitality businesses, including labor and employment issues, and has acquired a broad range of industry experience.

After graduating from law school eighteen years ago, Hayden began his career at a mid-sized civil litigation law firm where he previously interned. He then spent many years at one of the world’s largest international law firms practicing civil litigation. While there, he honed his skills by learning from other great lawyers, gained experience, and developed his legal acumen.

In 2009, he founded the boutique law practice Pace Law, P.C., dedicated to serving the hospitality and entertainment industries. His honesty, drive, and fluency in common sense undoubtedly contributed to his quick success. Within a few years, his firm expanded to include several lawyers, and his reputation earned him media attention and the privilege of representing many of Atlanta’s top nightclubs and food-service agents.

Having caught Stokes Wagner’s attention with the success of his own firm, Hayden was presented with the opportunity to merge his practice. Building upon the national hospitality law platform created by the firm’s principles, he has advanced Stokes Wagner’s “white glove” approach to client service, expanded the firm’s impressive client roster, and further elevated the firm’s profile. Hayden works closely with hotel clients such as Four Seasons, the Dorchester Collection, Viceroy, Nobu Eden Roc, and SBE.

Some of Hayden’s notable successes include a recent defense verdict for an Atlanta nightclub against TCPA claims amounting to over one million dollars. Prior to that, he successfully defended an iconic hotel in a discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by three claimants. Those claimants sought 12.5 million dollars from the Hotel. Hayden and the Stokes Wagner team obtained a complete defense verdict at the conclusion of a four-week jury trial held in Los Angeles, California.

Hayden regularly speaks nationally and internationally on entertainment, labor, and employment-related matters. Over the past eight years, he has been repeatedly honored by his peers as a “Super Lawyer,” as well as a “Legal Elite” and Top 100 Lawyer in the State of Georgia. Most recently, he appeared on the cover of the July 2017 issue of Attorney at Law magazine as the “Attorney of the Month.”
Hayden was born in Northern California and was raised in the Hudson Valley area of New York State. He attended the University of Virginia where he received a bachelor’s degree in Government, and Emory University’s School of Law, where he received a juris doctorate. He splits his time between Georgia and California.