Ralph M. Brody was born in Madison, Illinois, June 22, 1912 to Russian immigrants Harry and Beckie Brody. After graduating from the State University of Iowa with a BA in Political Science, he attended the University of Iowa where he received his JD in 1938.

Brody worked as an attorney for the U.S. Department of Agriculture from 1938-1944, when he received an appointment as Assistant Regional Counsel to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in Sacramento, CA. In 1952 he left the Bureau of Reclamation to pursue private law practice, primarily in the field of water and power law. In 1959 he was chosen by Governor Edmund Brown, Sr. to act as the governor's Special Counsel on Water Issues. At that time he was also appointed Chief Deputy Director of Water Resources. Brody used his water law expertise and political savvy to guide the governor's legislation through the California Legislature. He also acted as a liaison for the governor in presenting the proposed legislation to individuals and groups from one end of the state to the other. The lobbying was successful, and the California State Water Project was authorized by the electorate in 1960.

In 1960 Brody was appointed to the chairmanship of the California Water Commission, a position he held until the end of the Brown administration in 1966.

Brody became Manager/Chief Counsel for the Westlands Water District in 1960. Westlands, a water district comprised of some 350,000 acres of farmland, is a prime beneficiary of water from the San Luis Unit of the Central Valley Project. Brody remained at Westlands until his retirement in 1977, when he became a consultant to Westlands and other water districts.

Brody died December 22, 1981 while vacationing in Washington, D.C.