Rapides Parish Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
The goal in a Rapides Parish work injury case is simple to state and harder to reach: medical treatment approved without a fight, weekly checks that arrive on time, and a resolution that reflects what the injury actually cost you. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation firm that represents injured workers across Louisiana and Mississippi, and a Rapides Parish workers’ compensation lawyer from our team can take over the insurer, the paperwork, and the hearing process while you focus on recovery.
Rapides Parish sits in the middle of the state, with Alexandria and Pineville anchoring a workforce built on healthcare, logistics, construction, timber, and military-adjacent employment. Those jobs produce the kinds of injuries that insurers love to dispute: lumbar and cervical problems blamed on “degeneration,” shoulder and knee tears described as old sports injuries, and claims where the carrier suddenly decides your accident was not work-related at all. How those disputes get resolved depends heavily on deadlines and on knowing which forum decides them.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Rapides Parish Work Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured workers throughout Louisiana and Mississippi, including Rapides Parish, Alexandria, Pineville, and the surrounding communities of central Louisiana. Workers’ compensation is the center of the firm’s practice, not a side matter taken when a case happens to walk in. Our attorneys bring over 75 combined years of experience to claims that have been denied, delayed, or cut off, and the firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients. Consultations are free, we advance the costs of the case, and you owe no fee unless we recover benefits for you. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, and we offer Spanish-speaking services for clients who prefer to work in their own language.
The team is led by Rob Lunsford, Founding Partner, who has spent his entire legal career representing injured workers. Brad Baskin and Jennifer Priebe, both Partners, 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 successfully tried dozens of jury and bench trials to verdict, and Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher round out the attorney team.
Results matter more than adjectives. The firm secured $685,000 for a surgical tech with a lower back injury, $600,000 for a construction worker with a complex back injury, $385,000 for a project manager with back injuries after being struck in his work vehicle, and $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns. Clients consistently describe the same things in their reviews: attorneys who listen, who stay professional, and who stand up to the insurance company at every step.
Injuries and Claim Types We Handle for Rapides Parish Workers
- Back, Neck, and Spine Injuries: Lumbar and cervical disc herniations are among the most disputed claims. Warehouse, distribution, nursing, and construction work in the Alexandria and Pineville area wears on the spine, and carriers routinely point to degenerative disc disease. We build the medical record to show how the job caused or aggravated the condition.
- Shoulder and Knee Injuries: Torn rotator cuffs, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears often need surgery and long rehabilitation. Employers sometimes label them old sports injuries, which makes treating-physician opinions central to the claim.
- Fractures: Broken feet, ankles, hips, and other bones from falls, struck-by accidents, and equipment incidents can require specialists and complex surgical repair, with extended time away from work.
- Burns and Catastrophic Injuries: Industrial sites, plants, and oil field operations produce severe burns and life-altering trauma that call for lifetime medical planning, not a quick settlement.
- Firefighter and First Responder Claims: Hypertension, heart and lung disease, hepatitis, hearing loss, posttraumatic stress, and cancer tied to the job require careful proof of the work connection.
- Truck Drivers and Delivery Workers: Rapides Parish sits on major north-south and east-west freight corridors, and drivers hurt in on-the-job wrecks may also have a separate claim against the at-fault driver.
- Wrongful Death: When a workplace accident takes a life, surviving family members may be entitled to death benefits and may also have claims against responsible third parties.
What to Do After a Work Injury in Rapides Parish
Report the injury to your employer right away, preferably in writing and the same day. Louisiana law bars a compensation proceeding unless the employer receives notice within thirty days of the injury, so this is not a step to put off even if you think the pain will pass. Ask for the employer’s incident report, keep a copy of anything you sign, and write down who saw what happened, the time, the equipment involved, and the names of coworkers who can confirm it.
Get medical care and be specific with every provider about how the injury happened at work. Gaps in treatment and vague histories are what insurers use later to argue the injury came from somewhere else. Follow your doctor’s restrictions even when a supervisor pushes you to come back sooner than cleared.
The formal deadline to file a claim in Louisiana is generally one year from the date of the injury, and if the insurer has paid compensation, the window can extend to three years from the last payment. Do not assume that payments reset your protection without confirming it. Disputes in Rapides Parish are handled by the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration, which operates a district court in Alexandria. Under Louisiana law, the worker chooses the venue, and the options include the parish where the injury happened, the parish where you lived when hurt, or the parish of the employer’s principal place of business.
If the insurer denies a treatment recommendation, a fast clock starts. A request for review of that denial goes on Form 1009 and must be filed with the OWC within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice. The OWC medical director then has 30 calendar days to issue a decision. If you disagree with that decision, you have 45 days from the date it was issued to file Form 1008. Missing either deadline can cost you the treatment your surgeon has recommended, which is why a denial letter should go to a lawyer the day it arrives.
If a workers’ compensation judge issues a final judgment against you, an appeal to the appropriate court of appeal is available. For Rapides Parish, that is the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal. An appeal that suspends the judgment must be filed within thirty days, and one that does not suspend it within sixty days, counted from the day after the judgment was signed or the day after notice was mailed, whichever is later. After the appellate decision, a party can seek review from the Louisiana Supreme Court by applying for a writ within 30 days of notice of the judgment.
How Louisiana Wage Benefits Work for Injured Workers
Louisiana workers’ compensation pays for reasonable and necessary medical treatment and replaces part of your lost wages. When you cannot work at all, temporary total disability benefits are paid at two-thirds of your average weekly wage, up to a weekly maximum that is set each year by the state and fixed by the date of your accident. The cap does not change later, so the date of your injury controls it.
If you return to work but earn less because of your injury, supplemental earnings benefits may apply. When the injury prevents you from earning 90 percent or more of your pre-injury wages, SEB equals two-thirds of the difference between what you earned before and what you earn or are able to earn now. These benefits can continue until you are released to full duty, you are earning your pre-injury wages again, or you reach the 520-week maximum, and weeks of temporary total disability count toward that 520. Employers sometimes try to cut SEB by pointing to jobs you supposedly could perform, so the vocational evidence in your file matters as much as the medical evidence.
Permanent disability benefits, catastrophic injury benefits, and death benefits are available in the situations the statute describes. If someone other than your employer caused the accident, such as a negligent driver or an unsafe contractor, you may also have a separate injury claim. Louisiana now applies a two-year period to most injury lawsuits arising on or after July 1, 2024, and a 51 percent fault bar for causes of action arising on or after January 1, 2026. Coordinating that claim with your comp case, including how any recovery interacts with the compensation carrier’s reimbursement rights, is something we handle together.
Questions Rapides Parish Workers Ask About Comp Claims
Do I need a lawyer for a workers’ compensation claim in Rapides Parish?
Not every claim requires one, but if benefits have been denied, delayed, reduced, or cut off, or if you will be out of work for a long time, a lawyer can change the outcome. The insurer has adjusters and attorneys protecting its position, and you should have someone doing the same for you.
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. Attorney fees in workers’ compensation cases are also limited and approved under state law.
How long do I have to report and file a Louisiana claim?
Notify your employer within thirty days of the injury. A formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the accident, though the period may extend to three years from the last compensation payment if benefits were paid. Because the exceptions are narrow, speak with a lawyer as soon as you can.
Where is my case heard if I work in Alexandria or Pineville?
Disputes go to the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration, which has a district court in Alexandria, where a workers’ compensation judge decides the case. You choose among the parish of injury, the parish where you lived when hurt, or the parish of the employer’s principal place of business.
What if my injury was caused by a pre-existing condition?
A pre-existing condition does not automatically end your claim. If the job caused, worsened, or accelerated the condition, benefits may still be owed. Insurers raise this argument constantly, and answering it with strong medical evidence is a core part of our work.
The insurer denied my surgery. What can I do?
File a request for review with the OWC on Form 1009 within 15 calendar days of receiving the written denial. The OWC medical director has 30 calendar days to decide. If you disagree, Form 1008 must be filed within 45 days of the date the decision was issued, so the clock runs from issuance, not from when you read it.
Can I be fired for filing a workers’ compensation claim?
Louisiana protects workers from retaliation for filing a comp claim. If you were let go or punished after reporting an injury, tell us during your consultation so we can review your options.
How long can I receive supplemental earnings benefits?
SEB can last until you are released to full duty, you are back to earning your pre-injury wages, or you hit the 520-week maximum. Weeks of temporary total disability count toward that total, so time off work early in the claim uses part of the 520.
Will my weekly check amount change if the state raises the maximum?
No. Louisiana sets weekly compensation limits annually, but the limit that applies to you is fixed by the date of your accident and is not adjusted later. The date of injury matters for the benefit rate as well as the deadlines.
I was hurt in a wreck while driving for work. Can I get comp and sue the other driver?
Often yes. Workers’ compensation covers your medical care and wage benefits regardless of fault, and a negligent third-party driver may be separately liable for damages. Louisiana’s fault rules for causes of action arising on or after January 1, 2026 bar recovery if you are found 51 percent or more at fault, so how the crash is documented early matters. Coordinating both claims is important so they do not undercut each other.
Can I appeal if the workers’ compensation judge rules against me?
Yes. A final judgment can be appealed to the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal for Rapides Parish cases. An appeal that suspends the judgment must be filed within thirty days and one that does not within sixty days, running from the later of the day after signing or the day after notice was mailed. Decisions of the circuit courts in comp cases are published opinions.
Do you speak Spanish?
Yes. Hablamos espanol, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with our team in their own language from the first call to the end of the case.
Serving Rapides Parish Workers From Alexandria to Surrounding Communities
Our work for Rapides Parish clients covers Alexandria and Pineville, which together form the parish’s commercial and medical center, and extends through Ball, Woodworth, Boyce, Glenmora, Lecompte, Cheneyville, Forest Hill, Deville, and Libuse. We also represent injured workers in the rural stretches of the parish where timber, farming, and pipeline work support local employers. In neighboring parishes, the firm serves workers in Avoyelles, Grant, Natchitoches, Vernon, Evangeline, Winn, and Catahoula, including communities such as Marksville, Colfax, Natchitoches, Leesville, and Ville Platte.
Beyond central Louisiana, we handle workers’ compensation claims statewide, from Baton Rouge, Lafayette, and Lake Charles to Shreveport, New Orleans, and communities across south and north Louisiana. We also represent injured workers across Mississippi, including Jackson, Madison, Hattiesburg, Southaven, the Gulf Coast, the Delta, and north Mississippi.
Talk With a Rapides Parish Workers’ Compensation Attorney Today
If you were hurt on the job in Alexandria, Pineville, or anywhere in Rapides Parish, the deadlines in your case have already started running. A Rapides Parish workers’ compensation attorney from Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review your denial, your medical records, and your wage history, then tell you plainly where your claim stands. Call us any time, day or night. Consultations are free, and you pay no fee unless we recover benefits for you.
