 He was the father of Jorge Castañeda Gutman, who later also served as Foreign Secretary from 2000 to 2003.Born in Mexico City, Castañeda y Álvarez studied law at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), where he also later lectured, along with teaching positions at the Colegio de México and the Escuela Libre de Derecho.In addition to his term as foreign secretary, he also served as ambassador to France, Egypt, and the United Nations.