United States Bankruptcy Judge Martin R. Barash sits in Woodland Hills and Santa Barbara, California.  Prior to his appointment, Judge Barash was a partner at Klee, Tuchin, Bogdanoff & Stern LLP (now called KTBS Law) in Los Angeles, where he practiced from 2001 to 2015, representing debtors and other parties in chapter 11 cases and bankruptcy litigation. He first joined the firm as an associate in 1999.  Earlier in his career, Judge Barash worked as an associate at Stutman, Treister & Glatt P.C. in Los Angeles.  He also has served as an adjunct professor of law at California State University, Northridge. 

Born in Los Angeles, Judge Barash earned his A.B. in 1989 from Princeton University, where he graduated magna cum laude in Politics, and with a certificate with distinction in American Studies. 

He earned his J.D. in 1992 from the UCLA School of Law, where he served as editor, business manager, and symposium editor of the UCLA Law Review.  Following law school, he clerked for Judge Procter R. Hug, Jr., of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, from 1992 to 1993. Judge Barash is a former member of the board of directors for the American Bankruptcy Institute and its Education Committee, and now serves on its Committee for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.  He is a former member of the Board of Governors of the Financial Lawyers Conference and currently a Judicial Director of the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum.  He is a frequent panelist and lecturer on bankruptcy law and is a co-author of the national edition of the Rutter Group Practice Guide: Bankruptcy.