He graduated in 1867 with a Bachelor of Laws degree and was admitted to the bar.

When he was only twenty-seven, Lewis was appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.

[1] His term expired on January 1, 1895, and Judge Lewis resumed the practice of law in Richmond.

In 1905, he ran for Governor of Virginia, but was defeated, losing to Democrat Claude A. Swanson, and receiving 35.09% of the vote.

[3] From 1910 to 1912, he was U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District once again, but resigned and practiced law until a few months before his death.