Attorney

Chris Martin is a lawyer, community organizer, singer and songwriter. He grew up in South Central, Los Angeles, where he graduated from Dorsey High School in 2006. He then attended the University of California, Santa Barbara, where he graduated with a double major in English and History, and holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. At UC Hastings, Chris served as Co-President of the Black Law Students’ Association.

In 2018, Chris became the Director of the Legal Team for Black Lives Matter, Los Angeles. Through his work with BLM-LA, Chris helped organize a team of over 700 lawyers to reach out to 900 protestors who were arrested for protesting the killing of George Floyd, and successfully negotiated with LA City Attorney and District Attorney to drop all charges against most of them.

In 2020, Chris co-founded the Reimagine Child Safety Coalition, which is dedicated to community organizing for families who are trying to either stay together or get back together after they become entangled with the foster care system.

In 2023, Chris served on the Executive Board of the John M. Langston Bar Association, as Co-Chair of the Community Action and Outreach Committee, where he helped organize free legal clinics and mentored children at schools across South Central, Los Angeles, including his high school, Dorsey High, and Crenshaw High School. In 2024, for his commitment to the community, the Langston Bar Association awarded him the President’s Award, in recognition of his “Outstanding and Dedicated Service.”

In his spare time, Chris loves to sing. He is the lead singer of the band, Brownsuede, and their debut EP has surpassed a quarter of a million streams on Spotify. Their songs “The One” and “Fade Away” both charted at various college radio stations in the South and Northeast. He has performed in venues all across California, and is also a former member of the Los Angeles Lawyers’ Philharmonic.