You can deduct legal expenses that are related to doing or keeping your job, such as those you paid to defend yourself against criminal charges arising out of your trade or business.
These are itemized deduction. Here is where you claim them:
Federal
Deductions & Credits
Scroll to Other Deductions and Credits
Select Legal Fees
You can also deduct legal fees against an award.
As my colleague Kitty wrote, here is where you enter:
To enter your qualifying legal fees,
- In your open Federal return, choose the tab for Wages & Income
- Scroll down to Less Common Income and Show more
-
Start/Revisit Miscellaneous Income and choose Other reportable income
- Say Yes to continue to the screen "Other Taxable Income". Enter the description "Qualifying Legal Fees" and the amount as a negative number.
Source: How to
Enter Legal Fees for 2018 Tax Returns
