A new study projects a 4.3 percent slide in corporate spending on outside counsel next year, on top of this year’s 10.8 percent drop.

Outside counsel spending dropped from an average of $20.8 million in 2008 to $18.5 million this year and is projected to dip to $17.7 million in 2010, according to the “BTI Premium Practices Forecast 2010: Survey of Corporate Legal Spending” study by Wellesley, Mass.-based legal consulting shop BTI Consulting Group.