Born in Paramaribo in 1860, Coutinho began practicing law after passing exams in 1883. He also became a subdistrict court judge in Paramaribo.
Coutinho contested the 1888 general elections, but received only one vote.[1] In the 1892 general elections he received three votes.[2] He ran again in 1894, receiving 60 votes and finishing sixth (with three seats available).[3] At the same time, he also contested a by-election for a single vacant seat, finishing third.[3] In the 1896 elections he received only six votes.[4] However, in the 1898 elections he received 157 votes in the first round, and defeated J.O. Harken in a runoff for the third seat by 210 votes to 83, gaining election to the Colonial States for the first time.[5][6][7] Although he had been elected for a six-year term, all seats were vacated and put up for election in 1902. Coutinho received 431 votes, with 87% of the electorate voting for him;[8] However, he was up for re-election again in 1904 and was easily re-elected for a six-year term. Although he was re-elected again in 1910, he resigned shortly afterwards for health reasons and was replaced by Adolf Curiel [nl].
Coutinho subsequently moved to the Netherlands. He died in Voorburg in 1932.