Vance Center Joins Centro Mexicano Pro Bono for Annual Event in Mexico City

Vance Center Co-Executive Director Jaime Chávez Alor, right, and Centro Mexicano Pro Bono founder Ivette Montero during the keynote panel “Global Trends in Pro Bono,” at the Centro Mexicano Pro Bono’s annual event in Mexico City, April 28, 2026. Photo credit: Centro Mexicano Pro Bono

On April 28, the Vance Center participated in “Pro Bono Convening 2026: Challenges, Vision, and Action to Strengthen the Third Sector in Mexico,” organized by Mexican clearinghouse and Pro Bono Network of the Americas member Centro Mexicano Pro Bono.

This year’s edition of the annual gathering brought together lawyers representing companies, pro bono clearinghouses, and law firms, as well as participants from several civil society organizations, for a discussion on strengthening pro bono legal support for civil society groups in Mexico.

The half-day event began with opening remarks from Maria del Rosario Lombera-González, Partner at Baker McKenzie and Advisor at the Centro Mexicano Pro Bono. After welcoming attendees, she offered an overview of some key challenges for “third sector” groups such as CSOs, and highlighted opportunities to bring in pro bono support to address these challenges.

Vance Center Co-Executive Director Jaime Chávez Alor participated in the keynote panel, “Global Trends in Pro Bono,” alongside Centro Mexicano Pro Bono founder Ivette Montero.

He discussed the Vance Center’s co-counsel model of pro bono work and how coordinating with a global network of lawyers enables the Vance Center to respond to a range of requests from CSOs, addressing local and national challenges as well as regional and international legal questions.

He noted that the Vance Center is receiving more requests from CSOs in Latin America and beyond related to restrictions on civic space. These limitations often result from changes in legislation and policies modeled after those enacted by authoritarian governments.

He then outlined some tactics governments have used to limit CSOs’ activities, including new and increasingly complex registration and reporting requirements for organizations, as well as restrictions on funding sources and permitted activities. These challenges, he warned, are further entrenched by the broad discretion authorities and government officials have to enforce these policies, which can lead to more serious sanctions for organizations.

Chávez Alor discussed how Mexico’s civic space actors face new limitations from changes to tax regulations and oversight, and procedural burdens like lengthy official reviews of documents submitted by CSOs. In contrast, other countries like El Salvador and Nicaragua have implemented more overt restrictions through new legislation or changes in administrative requirements. He emphasized how pro bono legal support can help address these challenges, including through amicus briefs, litigation, and official communication with regional and international human rights mechanisms, alongside international efforts to raise awareness about the underlying issues.

Chávez Alor (right) and event speakers at the Centro Mexicano Pro Bono’s annual event in Mexico City, April 28, 2026. Photo credit: Centro Mexicano Pro Bono

Following the keynote panel,  a second discussion on “The Third Sector in Mexico” featured insights from Ricardo Bucio Mújica, CEO at Centro Mexicano para la Filantropía, A.C. and Carlos Eduardo López-Bosch Larenas, Advisory Coordinator at the Junta de Asistencia Privada de la Ciudad de México. The discussion was moderated by Ricardo Cervantes, Partner at Chevez Ruiz Zamarripa and Advisor at the Centro Mexicano Pro Bono.

The event concluded with remarks by Anahí Serrano Bandala, Partner at Mexican law firm CANNIZZO and Board Member at the Centro Mexicano Pro Bono, followed by a networking session where participants discussed opportunities for collaboration, including ways for law firms to meaningfully provide pro bono support to CSOs in Mexico.

Attendees at the Centro Mexicano Pro Bono’s annual event in Mexico City, April 28, 2026. Photo credit: Centro Mexicano Pro Bono