As a Senior Attorney, McDermott provides technical assistance to CLINIC’s network of charitable immigration legal services providers in matters related to program management and capacity building. McDermott began her career with CLINIC with the Religious Immigration Services department. She then worked for the state of Utah as the director of licensing and compliance for the State's Department of Alcohol. She returned to CLINIC after her most recent work as associate counsel to the New York State's Office for New Americans and director of hotline services and training for Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New York's Division of Immigrant and Refugee Services.  

McDermott attended Greensboro College with a B.S. in Psychology. After undergraduate studies, McDermott attended Duquesne School of Law in Pittsburgh. McDermott is a member of the Utah state bar.