July 2010
To mark the launch of a new ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) program in Mexico, a delegation led by Judge M. Margaret McKeown of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and Judge Carlos Lucero of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit visited Mexico City in mid-June.
Judge McKeown, chair of ABA ROLI’s Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) council, and Judge Lucero, a LAC council special advisor, met with various stakeholders to discuss the new program, which is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development and will support Mexico’s ongoing transition to the adversarial legal system by working with law schools, bar associations and the judiciary.
Conversations with representatives from top Mexican law schools and national bar associations focused on strategies to strengthen Mexico’s legal education and legal profession sectors, including the pros and cons of mandatory bar association membership, the role of bar associations in supporting ongoing legal reforms, continuing legal education, law school accreditation and cooperation among bar associations and law schools on issues of shared interest.
The delegation also met with representatives from the Mexican Federal Judicial Council and the Technical Secretariat for the Implementation of Constitutional Reforms on Security and Criminal Justice to discuss the status of the country’s transition to the adversarial system. Going forward, ABA ROLI will seek partnership with these institutions in program implementation.
This visit paved the way for ABA ROLI and stakeholders in Mexico’s legal system to collaboratively work toward reform.
The new program represents a continuation of our work in Mexico, with previous ABA ROLI programs having focused on establishing alternative dispute resolution centers, exploring law school accreditation, and assessing human trafficking investigation and prosecution.
For more information about the ABA Rule of Law Initiative’s work in Mexico, contact <[email protected]>.