Bruce Patton is a highly respected figure in the field of negotiation and conflict management. He is a co-founder and Distinguished Fellow of the Harvard Negotiation Project at Harvard Law School. Alongside Roger Fisher, Patton was instrumental in pioneering the teaching of negotiation at Harvard Law School where he served as the Thaddeus R. Beal Lecturer on Law for 15 years.

His contributions to the field include teaching the Negotiation Workshop and Advanced Negotiation Workshop at the Harvard Negotiation Institute, as well as conducting the Program on Negotiation for Senior Executives and offering occasional courses for law students.

In 1984, Bruce Patton co-founded Conflict Management Inc. a negotiation consulting and training firm, and Conflict Management Group now part of Mercy Corps, a not-for-profit organization focused on managing public conflicts.