Benjamin Cavataro

Visiting Assistant Professor

Biography

Benjamin L. Cavataro is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Law. His teaching and research focuses on tort and regulatory law. His work explores the intersection of products liability and administrative law, including the operation and limitations of key federal statutes and regulations (such as the Consumer Product Safety Act and National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act); the role of federal safety agencies (such as CPSC and NHTSA); and the implications of emerging technology on consumer product safety law.

Before joining Villanova Law, Professor Cavataro was special counsel at Covington & Burling LLP in Washington, D.C., where he represented clients in complex regulatory proceedings and litigation. He developed particular expertise in recalls, safety-related government investigations, and leading compliance programs. He also represented the plaintiffs at trial in a major Florida voting rights case, successfully obtaining a permanent injunction against key elements of a 2021 Florida voter-suppression law. He participated in a multi-state legal effort to prevent voter intimidation and safeguard voting rights during the 2020 election, and successfully represented individual clients in veterans’ benefits and landlord-tenant cases.

Professor Cavataro earned a J.D. magna cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School, where he was an editor of the Michigan Law Review, and earned an B.A., cum laude in political science from the University of Florida, where he was a Anderson Scholar with High Distinction. Following law school, he served as law clerk to Justice Beth Robinson of the Vermont Supreme Court and Judge John M. Walker, Jr. of the Second Circuit.

Professor Cavataro is admitted to practice in Florida and the District of Columbia. He is also admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court of the United States, the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Eleventh and Federal Circuits, and the U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Northern Districts of Florida. He is a member of the Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Committee of the International Consumer Product Health and Safety Organization (ICPHSO), and a graduate of the Anti-Defamation League’s Glass Leadership Institute.