He was a Liberal Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland from 1977 until 1983, representing the electorate of Mount Gravatt.
He did his articled clerkship at the firm of senior Liberal Party figure Leo Catt, and thereafter became a solicitor.
He was particularly concerned with family and disability issues as an MLA, the later stemming from his experience as the father of a son with Down syndrome.
[2][3][4] In 1983, Scassola was one of eight Liberals who crossed the floor to vote with Labor over the creation of a public accounts committee.
He was heavily involved in public life outside politics, serving as the foundation president of the Down's Syndrome Association, as president of the Brisbane Metropolitan branch of the Lions Club, and serving as patron of and providing free legal assistance to numerous other community organisations.