Nixon Peabody LLP trimmed its ranks last week, announcing that it was cutting 20 lawyers - none from its Buffalo office - and 36 other staff members.

"While we enter 2009 with a solid platform to build upon, we are also faced with many business challenges that other law firms face - reductions in client demand for legal services which result in reduced work volumes for attorneys and paralegals, in the face of an increasing cost of doing business," CEO Richard Langan said in a prepared statement.

Nixon Peabody has 20 lawyers in its Buffalo office. A spokeswoman would not disclose whether any support staff locally were impacted by the job reductions.

The firm has 15 U.S. offices, plus locations in England, France and China.