Francis Dunn graduated from the University of South Dakota School of Law and established a career in law, serving as a lawyer in Madison and Sioux Falls. He transitioned into the judicial system, becoming a municipal judge of Sioux Falls before being appointed as the state's eleventh circuit judge. Dunn further advanced his judicial career by becoming a justice of the South Dakota Supreme Court, representing the Second district.

Francis Dunn's judicial career, marked by a blend of local and state-level roles, suggests a deeply rooted commitment to regional legal traditions. His appointments and election to the South Dakota Supreme Court indicate a strategic focus on upholding and evolving state jurisprudence. Dunn's approach to the bench hints at a nuanced understanding of balancing local needs with broader legal principles, potentially making him a candidate whose judicial philosophy is both conservative and adaptive. His career trajectory reveals an individual who is both a guardian of established norms and a proponent of measured progress.