HR Problem Solver

The AI-driven surge in pro se litigation is genuinely useful and specific, and the ADA/FMLA/workers-comp triple-jeopardy framing for terminations has real operational value. However, large portions of the episode are consumed by introductory pleasantries, firm biography, off-topic book and travel recommendations, and generic reassurances that employers should 'have someone on speed dial.'

“we used to see maybe one a week, maybe two pro se lawsuits prior to the rise of AI...we might see six or seven in a day”

“the motivation for why am I terminating you? Only has to be 5, 10% of the decision. It almost always doesn't have to be 100% of the decision”

The observation that AI is inflating pro se litigation volume and creating an arms-race dynamic in employer-employee written exchanges is a fresh, practitioner-derived insight not yet widely circulated. The rest - California vs. Texas regulatory philosophy, non-compete fragmentation, when to call an attorney - is well-worn employment-law commentary.

“AI is telling these individuals, hey, you have a really good claim”

“I've now seen employers where they're making the strategic decision where they're basically saying we're not responding to you anymore”

Adam Doherty is a board-certified employment attorney with 25 years at a major national firm, actively handling 25 - 40 matters at a time - a genuine practitioner. The transcript confirms real day-to-day operational knowledge, though the interview format never pushes him to the edges of his expertise.

“I'm personally, uh, board certified in employment law...about 7% of attorneys, um, in the state of Texas are board certified in One of the areas”

“I've been practicing for about 25, I guess, going on 26”

The episode delivers usable specifics: Title VII damage caps at $300K tied to headcount bands, the 15- and 50-employee legal thresholds, separation agreements expanding from 1 - 2 to 7 - 8 pages, and 20 - 25 state addenda for multi-state agreements. The AI anecdote with the mismatched OSHA statutes is concrete. Weaker sections substitute adjectives ('very challenging,' 'very risky') for data.

“for Title vii, worst case scenario...The, the caps are at 300,000 and it's based on the number of employees”

“our kind of typical form is up to about seven or eight pages just for Texas”

The host asks broad, leading questions and responds almost exclusively with 'right,' 'fascinating,' or restatements of what the guest just said; there is no pushback, no hypothesis-testing, and no follow-up on the most interesting threads. The closing segment pivots entirely to books, travel, and advice-to-16-year-old-self, which wastes the final ten minutes for any B2B operator listener.

“That is so fascinating. I would imagine probably a topic for a different day”

“what advice would you give your 16 year old self?”