Nadler received his B.A. in 1969 from Columbia University, where he became a brother of Alpha Epsilon Pi.[8] After graduating from Columbia, Nadler worked as a legal assistant and clerk, first with Corporation Trust Company in 1970, then the Morris, Levin and Shein law firm in 1971.[9] In 1972, Nadler was a legislative assistant in the New York State Assembly before later that year becoming shift manager at the New York City Off-Track Betting Corporation, a position he would hold until becoming a law clerk with Morgan, Finnegan, Pine, Foley and Lee in 1976.[9]