He was admitted to the bar the same year and commenced practice in Muskogee, Oklahoma.

He also engaged in agricultural pursuits and in the manufacture of medicine for livestock.

[1][2][3] Adair was elected as a Democrat to the 73rd and 74th United States Congresses, serving from March 4, 1933, to January 3, 1937.

[2] Adair was nominated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on March 24, 1937, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois vacated by Judge James Earl Major.

His service terminated on January 19, 1956, due to his death in Quincy.