Mr Hunte, QC began his distinguished legal career on 23 November 1965 when he was called to the Bar of England and Wales. Over the years, he has served as a Magistrate, Deputy Chief Parliamentary Counsel, and Deputy Registrar of the Supreme Court in Barbados and Deputy Registrar of the Court of Appeal in Jamaica. He has also been called upon to act as Judge of the High Court of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court.
Mr. Hunte, QC drafted the 1982 Intellectual Property Legislation of Barbados and the Model Insurance Legislation of the Caribbean Law Institute. Most notably, he was the draftsman of the 1984 International Business Companies Act of the British Virgin Islands during his tenure as Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands (1982–1985). The first piece of legislation of its kind, the IBC Act has served as a blueprint for statutes adopted in many offshore jurisdictions and was the forerunner of the 2004 BVI Business Companies Act.
After serving as Attorney General of the BVI, Mr Hunte, QC was invited to join the law firm Harney Westwood and Riegels. While at Harneys, Mr Hunte, QC was honored by appointment as one of Her Majesty's Counsel for the BVI in 2003. Mr Hunte, QC was a Senior Partner when he retired from Harneys at the end of 2003. He came out of retirement in April 2004 when he founded the law firm Hunte & Co.
Known for his humor, patience, and candor in his service to the public, Mr. Hunte, QC chronicled his extraordinary career in his 2018 book release, Memoirs of a Caribbean Lawyer: The Autobiography of Lewis Stephenson Hunte, QC https://store.bookbaby.com/book/Memoirs-of-a-Caribbean-Lawyer.
Mr Hunte, QC must be credited for his mentorship of young lawyers who he has tutored over the years. In Memoirs, Mr Hunte, QC reflects on the opportunities he has had to make an impact on others throughout his career:
If anyone were to ask me what I consider to be my special gift as a human being, I would answer that it is the gift of teaching…The word “reward,” in this sense, as is the case with the teaching and nursing professions, has nothing to do with money, as it cannot be expressed in dollars and cents. Rather, it is the feeling of accomplishment you experience when you solve a difficult problem, and the result satisfies and delights you. No one but you will ever understand your feeling, nor will it be appreciated by the rest of the world which, due to ignorance, takes for granted what you have accomplished.
