Hayden Stephens & Associates

What Hayden Stephens & Associates does

Hayden Stephens & Associates is an Australian plaintiff-side law firm specialising in group actions (class actions) against large organisations, founded in 2000 and headquartered in Surry Hills, NSW. The firm is structured as an Incorporated Legal Practice (Hayden Stephens and Associates ILP Pty Ltd) and operates with a lean, small core team led by founder and director Hayden Stephens, who brings nearly three decades of specialist litigation experience including prior leadership of one of Australia's largest social justice law firms. Its case portfolio is dominated by wage theft claims on behalf of junior doctors across Australian public hospital systems, with landmark settlements of $229.8 million (NSW, August 2024), $31.5 million (ACT, December 2024), and $175 million in-principle (Victoria, March 2025), plus active matters in Tasmania, St Vincent's Hospital Sydney, and an investigation in the Northern Territory. The firm also pursues privacy/data breach matters, including a representative complaint at the OAIC against Latitude Financial affecting millions of customers, conducted in partnership with Gordon Legal.

The firm operates on a "No Win No Fee" contingency basis, deriving revenue from a court-approved percentage of settlement proceeds and from associated litigation funding arrangements executed with co-prosecution partners. Rather than building a proprietary technology stack, it relies on an agile partnership model that assembles case teams by co-counseling with Gordon Legal, Maurice Blackburn Lawyers, and Angela Sdrinis Legal, while leveraging referral relationships with medical professional bodies such as the Australian Salaried Medical Officers Federation. Marketing and client acquisition are driven primarily by earned media coverage in major Australian outlets, direct outreach, and a website that functions as a confidential registration portal for potential group members.

Name

Hayden Stephens & Associates

Legal name

Hayden Stephens and Associates ILP Pty Ltd

Website

https://haydenstephens.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Hayden Stephens & Associates is an Australian plaintiff-side law firm specialising in group actions, primarily wage theft class actions for junior doctors in public hospitals, operating on a No Win No Fee contingency basis from Sydney.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Class Action Legal Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (54111), Legal Services (5411)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services (BPAGAEAM)

Keywords

• Class action litigation
• Group action lawsuits
• Employment law services
• Data breach claims
• Plaintiff legal services

Headquarters

HQ city

Surry Hills

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Class Action Legal Services: The firm operates primarily on a 'No Win No Fee' contingency basis for class action litigation. Legal fees are deducted from settlement amounts awarded to group members, subject to court approval as fair and reasonable.
2. Litigation Funding: The firm assists clients in obtaining litigation funding to cover court fees, legal fees, and expert fees when needed to pursue class actions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Hayden Stephens & Associates is an Australian plaintiff-side law firm that initiates, prosecutes, and resolves group actions (class actions) against large organisations on behalf of individuals. Its core offering is contingency-fee class action representation, primarily focused on recovering unpaid overtime for junior doctors in public hospitals across Australian states and territories, with a secondary practice in mass data breach claims. Each matter is run through dedicated product pages on the firm's website, where affected individuals can register interest and join the group action.

Product overview

Hayden Stephens & Associates is an Australian law firm specialising in group actions (class actions) against large organisations. The firm operates as a single unified practice offering legal services for collective impact, primarily focused on employment law class actions for unpaid overtime by junior doctors. The core offerings include six active or concluded class actions for junior doctors across Victoria ($175M settlement), ACT ($31.5M settlement), NSW ($229.8M settlement), Tasmania, St Vincent's Hospital, and an investigation in the Northern Territory, plus a Latitude Data Breach privacy complaint. Supporting services include Legal Advice, Representation, Advocacy, Navigation, Lobbying, and Funding. The firm collaborates with partner law firms including Gordon Legal, Maurice Blackburn Lawyers, and Angela Sdrinis Legal for specific matters.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NSW Junior Doctors Class Action Class action for the recovery of unpaid overtime worked by junior doctors employed by NSW Health, resulting in a $229.8 million court-approved settlement in August 2024. Conducted in partnership with Maurice Blackburn Lawyers.
• ACT Junior Doctors Class Action Class action for recovery of unpaid overtime by junior doctors employed in ACT public health services against the ACT government and Calvary Health Care ACT, resulting in a $31.5 million settlement approved by the Federal Court in December 2024.
• Victorian Junior Doctors Class Action Class action against 36 Victorian Public Health Services for recovery of unpaid overtime worked by Victorian junior doctors, with a $175 million in-principle settlement subject to court approval.
• Tasmanian Junior Doctors Class Action Class action in the Supreme Court of Tasmania on behalf of doctors at Launceston General Hospital and Royal Hobart Hospital, seeking recovery of unpaid excess time worked since May 2019. Conducted with Angela Sdrinis Legal.
• St Vincent's Junior Doctors Class Action Class action in the Federal Court for recovery of unpaid overtime worked by junior doctors at St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney since January 2020.
• Northern Territory Doctors' Underpayment Investigation Investigation into potential claims for doctors in the Northern Territory for recovery of unpaid overtime from 2019 to present, conducted in conjunction with the Australian Salaried Medical Officers Federation (NT branch).
• Latitude Data Breach Privacy Complaint Representative complaint lodged at the OAIC against Latitude Financial for data breaches affecting 7.9 million driver's licence numbers, 53,000 passport numbers, and 6.1 million customer records, conducted in partnership with Gordon Legal.

Quantifiable outcome

• $229.8 million settlement achieved for NSW Junior Doctors
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Gordon LegalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChosen collaboration partner for Latitude Data Breach representative complaint at the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) and for Victorian Junior Doctors class action litigation. Gordon Legal provides depth of experience and access to resources in group litigation, industrial and employment matters.
• Maurice Blackburn LawyerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with for NSW Junior Doctors class action, which resulted in a $229.8 million settlement. Maurice Blackburn's class action team in Sydney offered depth of experience and resources. Maurice Blackburn was appointed as Scheme Administrator for the settlement.
• Angela Sdrinis LegalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with for Tasmanian Doctors class action. Their Hobart-based team provides local experience and access to agency resources for prosecution of the class action on behalf of Launceston General Hospital and Royal Hobart Hospital doctors.
• The Australian Salaried Medical Officers Federation (NT branch)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerProfessional medical union supporting the Northern Territory Doctors' investigation into unpaid overtime claims. Along with several medical officers, they are supporting enquiries and helping reach potential claimants among NT doctors.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Gordon Legal: Australian plaintiff firm with deep class action practice. Directly comparable — strategic co-prosecution partner on the Latitude Data Breach and Victorian Junior Doctors matters.
• Phi Finney McDonald: Boutique Australian law firm focused on class action and complex commercial litigation. Closely comparable as a specialist class action firm with similar plaintiff-side focus.
• Maurice Blackburn Lawyers: Leading Australian plaintiff law firm specialising in class actions and industrial/employment matters. Directly comparable as they co-prosecuted the NSW Junior Doctors matter and acted as Scheme Administrator on the $229.8M settlement.
• Levitt Robinson Solicitors: Australian plaintiff firm known for class actions and major commercial disputes. Directly comparable in size and plaintiff-side class action focus.
• William Roberts Lawyers: Australian class action and plaintiff litigation specialist firm. Comparable as a focused plaintiff-side class action practice.

Broad incumbents

• Piper Alderman: Full-service Australian law firm with employment and class action practices serving healthcare and public-sector clients. Comparable as a broader incumbent with overlapping employment/class action capability.
• Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan: Global litigation-only firm with significant Australian presence in commercial and class action disputes. Comparable as a broader-scope incumbent with overlapping class action capability.
• Slater and Gordon: Major Australian listed plaintiff law firm with broad practice areas including class actions, personal injury, and employment. Comparable as a large-scale plaintiff competitor with class action capabilities.
• Shine Lawyers: Large Australian plaintiff firm with class action and dispute resolution practices. Comparable as a major plaintiff-side competitor with similar contingency-fee class action work.

Others

• Omni Bridgeway: Global litigation funder (formerly IMF Bentham) that funds Australian class actions. Comparable as an ecosystem participant that the firm explicitly engages to obtain litigation funding for matters.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hayden-stephens-associates

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hayden Stephens & Associates