A white-shoe law firm is being blasted for standing by its bunny – a young lawyer whose Playboy past was revealed by staffers angry that the firm plans to retain the former playmate as they lay off other attorneys in her division.
Regina Usvjat, a stunning legal eagle at Thacher, Proffitt & Wood, was exposed as a former Playboy pinup by a jealous colleague who tipped off legal-industry blogs RollOnFriday.com and AboveTheLaw.com.
The Nov. 30 revelations were posted just days after the firm notified 24 of Usvjat’s fellow associates in its structured-finance and real-estate departments that, because of the national credit crisis, they would likely get pink slips in January.
Usvjat, 28, who joined the firm almost three years ago and works in structured finance at the firm’s Financial District office, survived the purge.
“Someone was jealous that she was not let go,” one of the firm’s attorneys told The Post. “It is simply cold and unfortunate that someone’s personal life is dragged into the public like this by some cruel individual who is trying to undermine a colleague’s career.”
The beautiful brunette Manhattanite posed for Playboy’s December 1999 issue as part of the magazine’s “Playmate 2000 Search” while she was a student at Rutgers University.
In the sexy shot, she ditches her briefs for nothing more than a tiny, black, see-through camisole. All is bared, including a prurient piercing.
While the blog items did not name her, the comments responding to the item did – even linking to her Playboy photo.
Thacher, Proffitt & Wood, a prestigious firm that represents major financial institutions and Fortune 500 companies, declined to speculate on who snitched about Usvjat’s private pic, but praised the St. John’s Law School grad’s work.
“That individual has worked for us for several years and is a very good lawyer and is one we hope continues to work with us for several years,” said Richard Hans, a partner in the firm.
Hans would also not identify the 24 associates who were notified of possible pink slips. “Those folks deserve whatever privacy they have,” he said.
Founded in 1848, the prestigious firm employs about 280 associates, many from Ivy League law schools.Aside from the 24 lawyers likely to lose their jobs, it has also offered buyouts to first-year associates in the affected practices.
Usvjat did not return calls for comment.
jfanelli @nypost.com