David P. Affinito

David P. Affinito is a distinguished Certified Civil Trial Attorney with 40 years of experience in litigation and personal injury law. Mr. Affinito has reported cases before the United States Supreme Court, the New Jersey Supreme Court, and has appeared before the United States Congress on behalf of his clients in Accutane litigation. Since 2014, Mr. Affinito has been practicing at DeZao & DeZao, P.C., where he served as the supervising attorney from 2023 until 2025. During this time, he led the firm through a transitional period following the illness and passing of James C. DeZao in 2024. Before joining James C. DeZao's firm, Mr. Affinito was a Senior Partner at Dell’Italia, Affinito & Santola, where he spent nearly three decades handling high-profile personal injury cases. His legal expertise spans both plaintiff and defense representation, focusing on wrongful death suits, mass tort litigation, and complex personal injury cases. Mr. Affinito is renowned for his leadership in the Accutane litigation against Roche Pharmaceuticals, serving as lead local counsel in New Jersey. His work in this landmark case, involving the psychological effects of the acne drug Accutane, gained national attention. His legal advocacy influenced Congressional hearings on drug safety and contributed to the manufacturer’s voluntary withdrawal of the product from the market. Throughout his career, Affinito has fought for justice in numerous wrongful death cases, including a case where five construction workers were tragically killed in a highway accident. His legal efforts helped establish the more common use of cement barriers to protect road construction workers in New Jersey. His appellate work includes influential cases such as Robert Rowe v. Hoffmann-LaRoche, which reshaped pharmaceutical litigation jurisdiction.