My name is Adam Sloate, and I’m a 3L at UCLA School of Law. I was born and raised in Irvine, California, and received my bachelor’s degree from Temple University, where I majored in sport and recreation management. During my time as an undergrad, I had the pleasure of working for national sports governing bodies, such as USA Water Polo, where I helped coordinate youth team competitions. When I decided to go to law school, I thought I wanted to be a sports agent.

I decided to come back to California for UCLA because of UCLA’s entertainment law program. I also appreciated UCLA’s offerings across different areas of the law; I felt that if for some reason I didn’t want to be a sports agent, UCLA would have strong connections to other industries so that I could pursue a different legal avenue.

Eventually, I realized I didn’t want to practice entertainment law, so all those other connections UCLA had to offer became very handy. I was able to try out many new subjects, including environmental law, tax, and corporate law. I also gained some real-world experience in non-entertainment settings, including as a judicial extern for Magistrate Judge Brenda Weksler during my 1L summer. Additionally, UCLA helped me find an externship with the U.S. Attorney’s Office here in L.A., so that I could gain more real-world legal experience.

I am glad I tried out many different offerings because I would never have found my passion for tax law without the choice of so many excellent programs. After taking Intro to Federal Income Tax and Taxation of Business Enterprises, I thought tax law might be my future career path. I further enhanced my budding tax enthusiasm in my 2L summer, when I worked as a summer associate at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP in New York City, where I worked on a variety of practical tax matters and conducted research on emerging concepts in the tax industry. My experience there confirmed that I had finally found my future career path. I look forward to returning to Cadwalader in New York after graduation, where I will be joining the tax department.

I am incredibly grateful for the opportunities I’ve had at UCLA – and for the option to take many more – and for the classmates and professors who have encouraged me to try things I never would have considered. I am happy to answer any questions you have about UCLA Law.

Contact Adam at studentambassador6@law.ucla.edu.

For questions related to the application or admissions, you can email admissions@law.ucla.edu.