Judge Dave Larson has lived in Federal Way since 1967 and attended Federal Way Public Schools.  He earned a bachelor's degree in public administration from the University of Puget Sound and a Juris Doctor from Seattle University School of Law.

Judge Larson is a member of the Board of Judicial Administration Public Trust & Confidence Committee and a member of the Legislative Committee and Therapeutic Courts Committee of the District and Municipal Court Judges Association (DMCJA).  He is also a member of the Civic Learning Council (formerly Council on Public Legal Education).  He is a past member of several other DMCJA committees. He taught new judges at the Washington State Judicial College on an annual basis from 2010 to 2020.

Judge Larson was the recipient of the Judge William Nevin Award in 2014.  The award is given by the Washington Judge’s Foundation to recognize long-term commitment to youth education and public understanding of the law and the role of the judiciary in American society.  He is also the recipient of the 2018 DMCJA President’s Award for his statewide efforts to protect and preserve judicial independence.  He is also the 2018 recipient of the Federal Way School District “Hero Award” for his long-term commitment to education.   

Previous Experience
Judge Larson was a trial lawyer in state and federal courts for twenty-three years and was active as a member of state and local bar association committees addressing court rules, professionalism, litigation, young lawyer mentoring and continuing legal education. As a lawyer, Judge Larson achieved an AV Peer Review Rating through Martindale-Hubbell. According to Martindale-Hubbell, this rating "is a testament to the fact that a lawyer's peers rank him...at the highest level of professional excellence."

Community Involvement
Judge Larson is and has been heavily involved in the Federal Way community. Judge Larson was president of the Federal Way School Board before joining the court. He had also been a member of the city’s Human Services Commission and was the very first chair of the City of Federal Way Board of Ethics from 1991-94.

He was the coach of the Federal Way RoboEagles in 2013, a competitive robotics team from Federal Way High School that he coached to the world championships in St. Louis in their first year of competition.   Judge Larson is a longtime member of the Kiwanis Club of Federal Way where he has been recognized with a Hixson Fellowship, Everyday Hero Award, Kiwanian of the Year, Distinguished Past President, and Distinguished Service awards. He is the founder and Kiwanis Adviser for the Aktion Club of Federal Way, a service club for persons with disabilities.  He was also a founding board member of the Kiwanis Foundation of Federal Way. He has been president of the club on two occasions and was a founding member of the Kiwanis Foundation of Federal Way.   He and his wife have sponsored two vocational technical scholarships through the foundation in memory of their parents.  He was also a Cub Scout pack leader and a coach for Federal Way National Little League and Federal Way Hawks Junior Football. He is also the former commander of the Civil Air Patrol (Air Force Auxiliary) Squadron at McChord AFB and a past member of the volunteer command staff for the Washington State Department of Transportation Air Emergency Services Division.  Judge Larson was named Citizen of the Month by the Federal Way Mirror in December 2015.  He lives in Federal Way with his wife of 29 years.  They have two sons, one is a police officer and the other is a physician.