The condensation reaction of isonicotino hydrazide with 5-bromo- 2-hydroxy- 3-methoxy benzaldehyde was performed to successfully synthesized the novel azomethine (Schiff base) ligand of the title compound named as [(E)-N′-(5-bromo- 2-hydroxy- 3-methoxy benzylidene) isonicotino hydrazide]. Synthetic ligand has been characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), ultraviolet- visible spectroscopy (UV–Vis), proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-NMR), and mass spectrometry. The proposed molecular structure was confirmed by the obtained spectroscopic data which showed the ligand to be a bidentate chelate. The ligand was then used for the reaction of transition metal chloride salts of Zn(II), Cu(II), Co(II) and Cd(II) to give a series of the complexes ML₂Cl₂. Complexes were synthesized at the molar ratio; M:L (where L is the ligand) of 1:2. The spectroscopic studies showed that the coordination occurred between the azomethine nitrogen and the carbonyl oxygen atom, and enabled the ligand acts as a neutral bidentate N,O-donor system. Molar conductivity measurements, magnetic susceptibility studies, melting point determinations, FT-IR, UV–Vis spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, and elemental microanalysis (C, H and N) were carried out for the synthesized metal complexes. The spectroscopic, analytical and magnetic information did confirm the suggested structures and indicated octahedral geometries around the metal centres. The anti-bacterial activities of free ligand and its metal complexes have been tested against the gram-positive (Bacillus subtilis) and gram-negative (Escherichia coli) bacterial strains by the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method. In both cases, the results indicated that the ligand and its metal complexes showed good antibacterial activity against the microorganisms tested.