Judge Dave Larson has been a judge for the Federal Way Municipal Court since March 2008.  He has lived in Federal Way since 1967 and is a graduate of Federal Way Schools.

Judge Larson is and has been heavily involved in his community.  In 2022, he was selected by the readers of the Federal Way Mirror as Federal Way’s Best Community Leader.  He served as President of the Federal Way School Board before joining the court. He was also a member of the City’s Human Services Commission and was the very first chair of the City’s Board of Ethics in 1991. He is a longtime member of the Kiwanis Club of Federal Way where he has been recognized with a Hixson Fellowship, Zeller Fellowship, Everyday Hero Award, Kiwanian of the Year Award, Distinguished Past President Award, and Doug Benton Award. He was a founding board member of the Kiwanis Foundation of Federal Way. He also founded the Aktion Club of Federal Way in 2011, a Kiwanis-based service club for adults with developmental disabilities.  He also taught leadership skills to youth and adults through Advancing Leadership and also served on the Board of Advancing Leadership.

Judge Larson is a member of the board for the Civic Learning Council (formerly, Council on Public Legal Education), a statewide group promoting civics education.  He was a 2014 recipient of the Washington Judge’s Foundation Judge William Nevins Award.  This award is given to judges with a long-term commitment to youth education and public understanding of the law and the role of the judiciary in American society.  He was recognized as a “Hero” of Federal Way Public Schools in 2018 and again in 2022.  He has helped teach Street Law at Todd Beamer High School in Federal Way since 2009 and frequently appears in other classrooms at all grade levels throughout the South Puget Sound. He was also the founder and convener for the former South King County YMCA District High School Mock Trial Competition.  He is also a guardian for Puget Sound Honor Flight escorting veterans on trips to Washington D.C.   

Judge Larson is currently a member of the District and Municipal Court Judges Association (DMCJA) Council on Independent Courts, Legislative Committee, and Therapeutic Courts Committee.  He is a former member of the DMCJA Judicial Independence Task Force, Court Rules Committee, Education Committee, Technology Committee, Long-Range Planning Committee, Board of Judicial Administration Public Trust & Confidence Committee, and was a Legislative Committee liaison to the Washington House of Representatives Impaired Driver Task Force.  He served as faculty at our State’s Judicial College teaching new judges from 2010 to 2020.  He was the 2018 DMCJA President’s Award for his work on judicial independence throughout the state.  His work was part of the inspiration for the formation of the Council on Independent Courts.

As a lawyer, Judge Larson was active as a member of the Washington State Bar Association, King County Bar Association, and Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association where he had served on committees addressing court rules, professionalism, litigation, young lawyer mentoring, and continuing legal education. His abilities as an attorney earned him an “AV Preeminent” 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."

Judge Larson earned a Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration from the University of Puget Sound in 1980 and a Juris Doctor from Seattle University School of Law in 1984.