He appeared with Úna Ní Raifeartaigh and Paul O'Higgins in actions taken on behalf of the Director of Public Prosecutions against Seán FitzPatrick arising out of the collapse of Anglo Irish Bank.
[23][24] In 2017, a murder trial at the Central Criminal Court was collapsed by the judge after the jury heard comments McDermott made describing the defence of provocation in an unrelated discussion on Prime Time.
[18] The Minister for Justice and Equality Charles Flanagan said he paid tribute to him as a "talented barrister, popular lecturer & entertaining newspaper columnist".
[27] Micheál P. O’Higgins, the Chairman of the Bar Council of Ireland, said he was "unparalleled" in his "ability to explain complex legal subjects and distil them for better public understanding".
[1] His funeral took place in Newman University Church on 14 December 2019 and was attended by the President Michael D. Higgins, the Chief Justice Frank Clarke and the Attorney General Séamus Woulfe.