Direct and sensitized excitation of 3-(N-phthalimido) adamantane-1-carboxylic acid (1) leads to the population of the triplet state that, in the presence of a base, decarboxylates, giving N- (1-adamantyl) phthalimide (2) cleanly and efficiently (Φ= 0.11). The radical initially formed by decarboxylation adds regiospecifically to electron deficient alkenes, whereas radical addition was not observed for electron rich alkenes. The radical addition can also be ...