Bruce Monning was raised in Amarillo, Texas and graduated from Southern Methodist University (1970) and the SMU School of Law (1972). Upon graduation he was associated with McKenzie and Baer in Dallas. From 1975 until 1983 he joined his father and grandfather in the Wills Point, Texas firm of Wynne & Wynne that was started in 1877 by his great grandfather. In 1983, Bruce returned to Dallas where he was a partner at Vial, Hamilton, Koch & Knox until 1995, when he left to form Monning & Wynne. He served on Vial Hamilton's Compensation Committee and was Chair of its Business Litigation Section.

While in Wills Point, Bruce tried an uncommonly large number of civil cases to juries in several North Texas counties. The frequency of trials decreased when he returned to Dallas, but their size and complexity increased. He obtained the largest civil jury verdict ever recorded in one East Texas County and, as defense counsel for two major oil companies, obtained a jury verdict of no liability in the longest civil trial that at the time ever been held in another. He has been Board Certified in Civil Trial Law since 1981 and is listed in the Best Lawyers in America for Commercial Litigation.

Anne and Bruce Monning have been married since 1973. Their children, Wright and Sarah, are both grown. His main recreational interests are riding horses, working cattle and golf.