Six years ago, a group of accomplished women lawyers in Mexico came together with a mission: to help other women advance in the legal profession.

Mariel Cabanas/courtesy photo

“The idea was to help younger female lawyers at a key moment in their careers so that it cost them a little less work to develop themselves professionally than what it took us,” recalls Mariel Cabanas, previously general counsel for Latin American microlender Gentera and now chairwoman of the board of Abogadas MX, the nonprofit born from those efforts to boost women lawyers.