Yazoo County Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
A back that gave out lifting inventory, a hand caught in a sawmill line, a shoulder torn pulling pipe, and suddenly the paychecks stop while the insurance adjuster’s questions start. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation law firm that represents injured workers across Mississippi and Louisiana, and a Yazoo County workers’ compensation lawyer from our team can take over the dealings with your employer and its insurer while you focus on treatment.
Yazoo County sits on the edge of the Delta, and its economy shows in the injuries we see: agricultural and timber work, equipment and machinery operation, trucking and hauling, warehouse and distribution jobs, health care work, and the manufacturing and industrial jobs that draw workers from Yazoo City, Bentonia, Satartia, Benton, and Eden. These are physical jobs. Spine, shoulder, knee, and crush injuries are common, and so is the insurer’s favorite response: that the problem is old, degenerative, or came from somewhere other than the job.
Mississippi comp is a statutory system with its own forum, its own deadlines, and its own rules about what is owed and when. Getting those details right in the first weeks often decides how the whole claim goes.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Yazoo County Comp Claim
We are a workers’ compensation firm first. Most attorneys who take comp cases are personal injury lawyers who handle a work injury only when one walks in the door. The firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients, and we represent injured workers in Yazoo County and throughout Mississippi and South Louisiana. We handle the case at no cost up front: consultations are free, we advance the costs of the case, and we are paid only if we recover benefits or a settlement for you. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, and we speak Spanish (hablamos español), so Spanish-speaking workers can work with us in their own language from the first call.
Rob Lunsford, our Founding Partner, has spent his entire legal career representing injured workers. Partners Brad Baskin and Jennifer Priebe have been recognized by Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, and The National Trial Lawyers, and the firm was ranked by Best Law Firms in 2026 for Workers’ Compensation Law, Claimants, in Jackson. Andrew Rueff has tried dozens of jury and bench trials to verdict and regularly appears before the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission, with Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher rounding out the attorney team.
The results reflect the kinds of injuries Yazoo County workers suffer. We secured $685,000 for a surgical tech with a lower back injury and $600,000 for a construction worker with a complex back injury. We recovered $385,000 for a project manager injured when his work vehicle was struck, $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns, $195,000 for a derrickhand whose left shoulder was damaged pulling large pipes, $135,000 for a diesel mechanic with a SLAP tear, and $150,000 for a truck driver with a meniscus tear. Clients consistently describe a team that listens, communicates, and stays with them against the insurance company at every step.
Injuries and Claims We Handle for Yazoo County Workers
- Back, neck, and spine injuries: Lifting, loading, and repetitive bending on farms, in warehouses, and on job sites produce lumbar and cervical disc herniations. When the carrier points to degenerative disc disease, we build the medical record to show how the work caused or worsened the condition.
- Shoulder and knee injuries: Torn rotator cuffs, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears are routine in equipment, timber, and trade work, and insurers often try to recast them as old sports injuries.
- Fractures: Falls from equipment, trailers, and ladders break feet, ankles, hips, and other bones, often requiring specialists and surgical repair with a long recovery.
- Burns and catastrophic injuries: Industrial settings, oil field work, and plants produce burns, crush injuries, and amputations that change a worker’s ability to ever return to the same job.
- Truck and vehicle injuries on the job: Drivers, delivery workers, and field employees hurt in wrecks while working may have both a comp claim and a separate claim against the at-fault driver.
- Firefighter and first responder claims: Hypertension, heart and lung disease, hepatitis, hearing loss, posttraumatic stress, and cancer tied to the job are claims we pursue for those who serve the community.
- Denied, delayed, and terminated benefits: Claims rejected outright, medical care cut off, or checks stopped without warning are the heart of our appeals work.
- Wrongful death: When a worker is killed on the job, dependents may be entitled to death benefits, and a third party may also be responsible.
What to Do After a Work Injury in Yazoo County
Start with notice. Mississippi requires you to report your injury to your employer within 30 days of the accident. Do it in writing if you can, keep a copy, and describe what happened and which body parts were hurt. Verbal notice to a foreman is better than silence, but a dated written record removes arguments later. Coverage in Mississippi begins on the first day of employment, with no waiting period and no minimum earnings requirement, so a new hire hurt in the first week is covered like anyone else.
Get medical care and be specific with every provider about how the injury happened at work. Gaps and vague histories are what insurers use to argue that the condition was not work-related. Follow your restrictions, and do not return to full duty on the insurer’s word alone. Keep pay stubs, schedules, photos of the scene, names of coworkers who saw the incident, and every letter you receive from the carrier.
Separate from notice is the filing deadline. Generally you have two years from the date of injury, or from the date of the last compensation payment, to file a Petition to Controvert with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. If no disability benefits were ever paid, the right to benefits is barred unless a claim is filed with the Commission within those two years. Do not wait on a carrier’s promises while that clock runs.
Mississippi comp cases are not heard in the county courthouse. They go to the Commission, which is made up of three members appointed by the Governor with Senate approval. A contested claim is heard by an Administrative Judge at an evidentiary hearing, and a decision can be taken to the Full Commission, which sits in Jackson and reviews the record already made rather than holding a new trial. A final Commission award can then be appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court within 30 days, on the record only, and that court often assigns the appeal to the Mississippi Court of Appeals. Because the record is built at the first hearing, the preparation done before it matters enormously.
The most common mistakes are giving a recorded statement to the adjuster before understanding how it will be used, treating with a doctor who downplays the work connection, signing forms the insurer sends, and missing the deadlines above. Talking to us early costs nothing and prevents most of them.
How Insurers Contest Mississippi Comp Claims and What Wage Benefits Look Like
Carriers use a familiar set of arguments: the accident did not happen at work, the injury is a pre-existing or degenerative condition, the worker can return to duty sooner than the doctor says, or benefits simply stop. A pre-existing condition does not end a claim. If your job caused, aggravated, or accelerated the condition, benefits may still be owed, and the answer is strong medical evidence from a treating physician who understands your job’s physical demands. Witness statements and work history fill in the rest.
Wage replacement for total disability, whether temporary or permanent, is generally two-thirds of your average weekly wage, subject to a statutory weekly maximum that is adjusted periodically, and it is capped at 450 weeks. Permanent partial disability benefits in most cases likewise cannot run beyond 450 weeks. Medical treatment that is reasonable and necessary is covered separately. Because the weekly rate depends on how your average wage is calculated, overtime, second jobs, and seasonal pay can change the number, and an incorrect calculation quietly shortchanges you for the life of the claim.
Some Yazoo County injuries involve someone besides your employer, such as a negligent driver who hits your work truck or a contractor whose unsafe site causes a fall. In those cases a separate injury claim may exist alongside comp, and our personal injury team makes sure the two claims work together. Claims against a county or government agency carry a one-year limit and special notice requirements, so those must be raised promptly.
Yazoo County Workers’ Compensation Questions Answered
Do I need a lawyer for a workers’ compensation claim in Yazoo County?
Not every claim requires one, but if benefits have been denied, delayed, reduced, or cut off, or your injury will keep you out of work for a long time, a lawyer can make a major difference. The carrier has adjusters and attorneys protecting its interests, and you should have someone protecting yours.
How much does it cost to hire your firm?
Nothing up front. Consultations are free, we advance the costs of the case, and we are paid only if we recover benefits or a settlement for you. Attorney fees in comp cases are also limited and approved under state law.
How long do I have to report my injury?
Mississippi requires notice to your employer within 30 days of the accident. Report as soon as you can, and put it in writing.
How long do I have to file a claim?
Generally two years from the date of injury or the last compensation payment to file a Petition to Controvert with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. If no disability benefits have been paid within two years of the injury and no claim was filed, the right to benefits is barred.
Am I covered if I was just hired?
Yes. Mississippi coverage starts on the first day of employment, with no waiting period and no minimum earnings requirement, provided your employer is one the law requires to carry coverage.
Can I be fired for filing a claim?
Mississippi protects workers from being fired in retaliation for filing a comp claim. If you were let go or punished after reporting an injury, tell us so we can review your options.
What if the insurance company says my injury is from an old condition?
That argument does not automatically defeat a claim. If work caused, worsened, or sped up the condition, benefits may still be owed. The outcome often turns on the treating doctor’s opinion about causation, so getting that opinion documented properly is central to our work.
Where will my case be heard?
Before the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission, not a county court. An Administrative Judge holds the evidentiary hearing, and a review hearing before the Full Commission in Jackson is available if you appeal that decision.
What happens if I lose at the Commission?
You can appeal a final award to the Mississippi Supreme Court within 30 days. The appeal is decided on the record made before the Commission, and the Supreme Court may assign it to the Court of Appeals. This is why the first hearing must be prepared as if it is the only chance to build the record.
Can I take my regular job back to work while my claim is pending?
Only when your doctor releases you. Returning early because the carrier pressures you can hurt both your health and your claim. If light duty is offered, we review whether it matches your actual restrictions before you accept.
Will my health insurance cover treatment while my comp claim is disputed?
Often it is a stopgap, but health insurers may later seek reimbursement if comp is found responsible. Tell us about any treatment you have paid for or run through other coverage so it can be handled correctly as the claim resolves.
Can I recover more than comp if a third party caused my injury?
Possibly. If someone other than your employer, such as a negligent driver or contractor, caused your injury, you may have a separate injury claim. We review both so they do not undercut each other.
Serving Injured Workers From Yazoo City to the Delta and Beyond
We represent injured workers throughout Yazoo County, including Yazoo City, Bentonia, Satartia, Benton, Eden, Holly Bluff, and the farming and timber communities scattered across the county’s hills and bottomlands. Our reach extends to neighboring Madison County and Hinds County, to Vicksburg and Warren County to the southwest, Holmes County to the east, and the Delta communities to the north and west, including Sharkey and Issaquena counties. From there we serve workers in Jackson, Madison, Hattiesburg, Southaven, and the Gulf Coast, and across north Mississippi.
The firm also represents injured workers across Louisiana, including New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Shreveport, and the rest of South Louisiana and north Louisiana. Wherever the injury happened, if you were hurt on the job, we can talk through your options.
Talk With a Yazoo County Workers’ Compensation Attorney Today
If you were hurt at work in Yazoo County, you do not have to take on the insurance company by yourself. A Yazoo County workers’ compensation attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review your situation, explain the deadlines that apply to you, and start building the medical and wage evidence your claim needs. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, consultations are free, and you pay no fee unless we recover benefits for you. Call us today and tell us what happened. Hablamos español.
