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Carlos Castrillo, LLM anticipated ’27 describes his lifelong quest to “find the truth of everything,” a mission he inadvertently began when he decided years ago to study engineering. Before long, he became disillusioned with abstract mathematics and the concept of scientific models as approximations — rather than absolute truth. 

Influenced by his lawyer parents, Castrillo eventually chose the legal profession as a way to stay close to philosophy, and has dedicated his educational journey to exploring the philosophical foundations behind legal topics.

After many years and three previous advanced degrees, his master’s in philosophy program at the University of Buenos Aires (2023-25) finally gave him the framework that revealed to Castrillo what lies beneath the law. That discovery has become transformative for the Argentinian’s career and intellectual pursuits. His most recent master’s program — his fifth overall and third from UNH Franklin Pierce has made his path even more clear, teaching him lessons he didn’t anticipate. 

Within a legal career that spans four decades, it’s the combination of his recent studies at UNH and his theoretical foundation that led Castrillo to develop an AI‑driven software system, Spes (Latin for “hope”), which he describes as an effective tool for legal assessments, court responses, patent drafting and prosecution, and beyond. 

“It didn’t let me down,” he says, “and I would tell anyone to go for it because sometimes you don’t know exactly what you’re going to find."

“[In my writing], there’s always something philosophical beneath it, trying to find what’s there,” says Castrillo, who in 1990 founded Buenos-Aires-based Guirao & Castrillo, a boutique law firm specializing in IP that later became Castrillo & Castrillo. “My master’s in philosophy showed me that, and now, thanks to UNH Franklin Pierce, I’m developing a software that’s philosophical at the heart of it.”

An interest in artificial intelligence pre-dates Castrillo’s LLM at UNH Franklin Pierce. It was an essay related to the topic that earned him one of five annual Inter-American Association of Intellectual Property (ASIPI) scholarships to the school. The scholarship program, an agreement between UNH Franklin Pierce and ASIPI, demonstrates a commitment to global education and collaboration in the IP sector. Castrillo’s essay, “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Intellectual Property: Challenges in Light of René Girard’s Legal and Anthropological Theory,” made an impression on the scholarship committee, and he became a candidate for the online LLM in IP in the fall of 2025. Castrillo saw the scholarship as an opportunity to test whether his deep admiration for American legal teaching would hold up in practice. 

“It didn’t let me down,” he says, “and I would tell anyone to go for it because sometimes you don’t know exactly what you’re going to find."

Castrillo approaches his LLM classes with the intention of deepening his knowledge of patents. So far, the program at UNH Franklin Pierce has exceeded his expectations by — ironically — revealing how little he actually knew about patent practice, despite his wealth of professional experience. Patent Practice I, taught by Adjunct Professor Jessica Harrison, JD ’14, exposed him to complex technical issues in English, which he found difficult as a non‑native speaker (and non‑engineer). Discovering that UNH Franklin Pierce policies allowed the use of AI in certain circumstances, Castrillo began using the tools to help with assignments, initially feeling uneasy but quickly becoming fascinated by how they worked. But instead of relying blindly on AI‑generated answers, he studied how to prompt AI in unconventional ways. Out of the knowledge gained in the course, Castrillo developed Spes, which currently holds six provisional patents.

Reflecting on the value of the LLM at UNH Franklin Pierce, Castrillo praises the depth of the American patent system and the teaching style on the subject, and credits the program with further opening his mind. While emphasizing that his writings have always contained a philosophical layer, he notes that continuing education has been essential to his ability to uncover the complexities of legal issues. That philosophical foundation became the engine that now powers his software, something he may not have discovered had he not continued his lifelong pursuit of the truth.