EP363 Mediation in Mexico: A Post-FIMEP 2026 Talk with Ernesto Rea Cano
A few months ago I traveled to Guadalajara for FIMEP, the Foro Internacional de Mediadores Profesionales (the International Forum of Professional Mediators), and one person made the whole trip feel like home. Ernesto Rea Cano was my guide there, he and his family hosted me, and he helped coordinate the entire event. I was connected to him through Alberto Elisavetski after Alberto’s EP357 podcast sit down, who told me simply, “Go to Ernesto, he speaks English and he’ll be your guide.” I promised Ernesto I’d bring him on the LMI Podcast so you could meet him too, and hear what conflict resolution looks like from inside one of Mexico’s most active mediation communities.
Meet Ernesto Rea Cano
Ernesto is a mediator based in Guadalajara, Jalisco, with about fourteen years in the field, and the principal of Rea Cano y Asociados. His office is unusual in its range: he mediates family, civil, commercial (mercantile), and criminal (penal) matters, where many mediators specialize in just one. When I asked what drew him to this work, his answer was refreshingly simple: “I like it. I believe in mediation. I want to live in a world of peace, a world where we can understand each other.” Fourteen years in, that is still the engine.
What is FIMEP?
As Ernesto explained, FIMEP is not a course or a congress, it’s a forum, held every two years, where mediators from around the world come together to exchange experiences. This edition drew mediators from around a dozen countries, including Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Uruguay, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and the United States. FIMEP’s president is Dr. Javier Ales of Spain, who invited Ernesto to coordinate the 2026 forum in Guadalajara. The next one, FIMEP 2028, will be in Spain.
The IJA: alternative justice, built into the state
One thing I learned in Guadalajara for the first time is the IJA, the Instituto de Justicia Alternativa. Ernesto described it as a government institution responsible for giving society the opportunity to learn about mediation and other alternative methods for resolving conflict. It offers courses, diplomas, and certification, and it’s free. And here’s the part that surprised me: while the IJA is based in Jalisco, a newer national law means that once you’re certified as a mediator through the IJA in Jalisco, you can practice as a mediator across all of Mexico.
Mediation in Mexico, in Ernesto’s words
I asked Ernesto to describe the state of mediation in Mexico. His answer was honest: “Difficult and hard.” Not because the tools don’t exist, but because of culture. “Many people think the only way to fix a conflict is by fighting,” he said. “That’s why we need to change the mind.” So he and his colleagues take the message beyond the office, into congresses, neighborhoods, and professional unions, teaching not just mediation but dialogue itself, how to talk to another person with empathy.
When we compared the U.S. and Mexico, Ernesto was clear that our cultures, histories, and economies are different, and that those differences shape how people react to conflict. But the thing that struck me most, sitting in that room with speakers from a dozen countries, is how universal the human part is. Everywhere, people want to be heard. Everywhere, they want empathy. The techniques I trained in back in Texas apply to a family in Ecuador too, because human beings are human. That is exactly why gatherings like FIMEP matter: we’re different enough to learn from each other, and alike enough that it transfers.
“Don’t forget, you have options. You have alternatives to fix your conflict another way, a way of peace.” — Ernesto Rea Cano
Connect with Ernesto
- Rea Cano y Asociados (Facebook): facebook.com/reacanoyasociados
- LinkedIn: Ernesto Samuel Rea Cano
- Instituto de Justicia Alternativa (IJA), Jalisco: ija.gob.mx
- Related listening: EP357 with Alberto Elisavetski (ODR Latinoamérica), and EP359, my FIMEP 2026 recap.
Listen & subscribe: The LMI Podcast, the intersection of law, tech, and conflict resolution. Subscribe on YouTube and listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Amazon Music. Want to be a guest? Visit lminetwork.com/prepare.
