A resident of South Burlington since 2007, Martin grew up in Alpena, Michigan. He graduated from Alpena High School (1981), Alpena Community College (1984), the University of Michigan Business School (1986, BA in Business Administration), and the University of Michigan Law School (1993). Before attending law school, he worked in New Jersey and New York for four years in data communication sales. After graduating from law school, he worked for Judge John Butzner of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond Virginia and then Judge Paul Friedman of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.

In 1995, Martin became a trial attorney at the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., where he worked for thirteen years. During his tenure at the Department of Justice, Martin worked on a wide array of cases, primarily involving the defense of federal land-management agencies such as the Department of the Interior, the Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. Forest Service. He also worked on matters involving the National Environmental Policy Act; collection of royalties on oil, gas, and other minerals owned by the federal government; and the trust responsibilities that the federal government owes Indian tribes.

For a number of years, Martin, his wife Anne, and his sons Griffin and TJ had gone on family vacations at the Tyler Place Resort in Highgate Springs, Vermont. They fell in love with the state so, in 2007, they moved to South Burlington where Martin became a stay-at-home dad.

In March 2010, Martin was elected to the South Burlington School Board where he served for eleven years.

In the spring of 2013, Martin interned for three months with Judge William Sessions of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont. In the fall of 2013, Martin became a member of the Vermont Bar.

Watercolor painting has become a serious hobby for Martin, who had an exhibit of his work in November 2012 at the Davis Studio in Burlington and in April and May 2016 in the State House.  Martin is currently the President of the Vermont Watercolor Society.

In the 2022-23 biennium, Martin is the Chair of the Judiciary Committee, the Chair of the Special Committee on Impeachment Inquiry, and the Chair of the House Ethics Panel.