Hamid Yunis, who stepped down as McDermott London managing partner last June, is set to move to Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, according to sources familiar with the situation.
Yunis, who was succeeded by leveraged finance partner Aymen Mahmoud as London managing partner last year, with Graham White also appointed as senior partner, departs McDermott after more than eight and a half years. He joined the firm from Taylor Wessing in 2016, where he led the healthcare group.
He will come to Pillsbury with experience advising healthcare providers and medical product manufacturers on complex joint ventures, public-private partnerships, and funding arrangements. He also advises non-healthcare clients on infrastructure and major projects, spanning M&A, private equity and corporate finance.
Yunis, who served as London managing partner from 2019, steered the office through five years of growth, with total lawyer headcount up 31% in the five years to 2024, as reported in last year’s Global London. Under his leadership, the firm also relocated its offices to 22 Bishopsgate in 2022.
Yunis’ departure from McDermott follows several other recent exits, including former Cooley M&A partner Michal Berkner, who left in November last year after just seven months, as well as private client partners Nick Holland and Simon Gibb, who departed in September to join Maples and Trowers & Hamlins, respectively.
Just before the leadership switch up that saw Mahmoud take over as London chief, Tom Whelan, the former head of the private equity and corporate transactions group, left to join Reed Smith in February 2024.
Despite these departures, the firm remains committed to expanding in London, having added a series of laterals over the past year. Most recently, McDermott hired arbitration lawyer Milo Molfa from boutique firm Curtis Mallet-Prevost Colt & Mosle. Other notable recent hires include acquisition finance partner Chris Kandel from MoFo in May, M&A partner Sebastian Bonneau from Eversheds in October, and CMS’s international private equity co-head Jason Zemmel in the same month.
A McDermott spokesperson said in a statement: ‘We’d like to thank Hamid for his many contributions to McDermott over the years. During his tenure, the London office experienced strong revenue growth, welcomed top talent and bolstered our commitment to excellence.’
Pillsbury has been approached for comment.
