AW: 75% of Law Depts Face '09 Budget Cuts

Altman Weil has released a new Survey on Law Dept Cost Control that shows that 76% of responding GCS say their law depts face budget cuts averaging 11.5% for '09. And 15.6% say budgets will increase -- but by a smaller percentage than in prior years.

More than 80% of respondents cited outside counsel costs, and the unpredictable nature of legal spending. Third place, cited by 40% -- finanical exposure from litigation or potential litigation.

The survey was conducted in November and polled 1,292 GCs.