Lafayette Parish Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
A lot of Lafayette Parish jobs put people in the way of injury: oilfield service work, construction crews, hospital floors, delivery routes along I-10 and I-49, and warehouse docks. When one of those jobs leaves you hurt and the insurance adjuster starts asking questions, you need a Lafayette Parish workers’ compensation lawyer who handles these claims every day. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured workers in Lafayette Parish and across Louisiana and Mississippi, and workers’ compensation is the center of our practice.
Louisiana claims from this part of Acadiana are heard by the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration, through the district court that sits in Lafayette. If a workers’ compensation judge rules against you, the appeal runs to the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal, which covers Lafayette Parish along with Acadia, Vermilion, Iberia, St. Martin, St. Landry and a number of neighboring parishes. Knowing that path from the start shapes how a claim should be built, because the record created at the first hearing is the record every later court will review.
Most disputes follow a pattern. The insurer questions whether the accident really happened at work, points to a pre-existing condition, authorizes only part of the treatment your doctor recommends, or ends your wage checks without warning. Each of those has an answer, but the answer usually depends on medical evidence gathered early and on deadlines that are easy to miss.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for Your Lafayette Parish Comp Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation firm serving injured workers in Lafayette Parish, the rest of South Louisiana, and throughout Mississippi. Most lawyers who take comp cases are personal injury attorneys who see a work injury only occasionally. We have recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients, consultations are free, we advance the costs of the case, and we are paid only if we recover benefits for you. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, and Hablamos español.
The people handling your case matter. Rob Lunsford, our Founding Partner, 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 show what that focus can produce. We obtained a $685,000 settlement for a surgical tech with a lower back injury and $600,000 for a construction worker with a complex back injury. Other outcomes include $385,000 for a project manager injured when his work vehicle was struck, and $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns, the kind of case that fits the energy and industrial work common around Lafayette. Clients consistently describe a team that listens, communicates, and stands up to the insurance company at every step.
Injuries and Claim Types We See From Lafayette Parish Workplaces
- Back, neck, and spine injuries: Lumbar and cervical disc herniations are among the most common serious comp injuries, especially for warehouse, trucking, construction, and healthcare workers. Insurers often blame degenerative disc disease, so the case turns on showing how the job caused or aggravated the condition.
- Shoulder and knee injuries: Torn rotator cuffs, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears are frequent among pipe handlers, mechanics, and laborers. Employers sometimes call them old sports injuries, which makes the medical history critical.
- Fractures: Broken feet, ankles, hips, and other bones from falls, struck-by incidents, and equipment accidents can require specialists and complex surgical repair, and long recovery periods away from work.
- Burns and catastrophic injuries: Oil rigs, plants, and industrial sites carry fire, chemical, and heavy-equipment risks. These claims often involve permanent disability benefits and sometimes claims against parties other than the employer.
- Firefighter and first responder claims: Hypertension, heart and lung disease, hepatitis, hearing loss, posttraumatic stress, and cancer tied to the job require careful medical proof of the connection to the work.
- Vehicle accidents on the job: Delivery drivers, truckers, and employees running errands in work vehicles are hurt on Lafayette-area highways. These cases can involve both a comp claim and a personal injury claim against the at-fault driver.
- Wrongful death: When a workplace accident takes a life, surviving family members may have death benefits under comp and, in some situations, a separate claim against a negligent third party.
What to Do After a Work Injury in Lafayette Parish
Start with medical care and with notice. Report the injury to your employer right away, in writing if possible, and in no event later than 30 days after the accident. Louisiana law bars a compensation proceeding if the employer was not given notice within that window, so a casual mention to a coworker is not enough. Tell the treating provider that the injury happened at work and describe every body part that hurts, not just the worst one, because gaps in early records are later used against you.
Keep your own file. Write down the date, time, location, and how the accident happened, the names of anyone who saw it, and any statements your supervisor made. Save pay stubs, job descriptions, and every letter or email from the insurer. Be careful with recorded statements to the adjuster; what you say about prior injuries or how the accident unfolded will be quoted back to you.
The filing deadline is separate from the notice deadline. A formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the date of injury, though if the insurer has paid benefits, the period may extend to three years from the last payment. Do not assume that because checks are arriving, you are safe indefinitely. Payments can stop, and the clock does not always behave the way people expect.
Disputes over medical treatment have their own short fuse. If the insurer denies a treatment your doctor requested through utilization review, you have 15 calendar days from receiving the written denial to file Form 1009 with the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration, and the OWC medical director then has 30 calendar days to decide. If you disagree with that decision, you have 45 days from the date it was issued to file Form 1008. Missing these windows can cost you surgery or therapy that your doctor says you need.
Where your case is heard is partly your choice. Louisiana lets the worker pick the parish where the injury occurred, the parish where the worker lived when hurt, or the parish of the employer’s principal place of business. For many Lafayette Parish workers, the district court in Lafayette is the natural venue. If a workers’ compensation judge issues a final judgment, an appeal must be filed within 30 days when it suspends the judgment, or within 60 days when it does not, counted from the day after the judgment was signed or the day after notice was mailed, whichever is later. Decisions of the courts of appeal in comp cases are published opinions, so appellate work in this area carries lasting weight.
How Louisiana Wage Benefits Work and Where Claims Go Wrong
Louisiana comp pays all reasonable and necessary medical treatment, plus weekly indemnity while you cannot work. Weekly compensation is set as a share of your average weekly wage and is subject to a maximum and minimum that are adjusted annually based on the statewide average weekly wage. The limits that apply to you are fixed by the date of your accident and are not revised later.
If you can return to work but only at reduced pay, supplemental earnings benefits come into play. When you cannot earn 90 percent or more of your pre-injury wages, SEB equal two-thirds of the difference between your pre-injury average monthly wage and what you earn or are able to earn. They continue until you are released to full duty, you are earning your pre-injury wages, or you reach the 520-week maximum, and weeks of temporary total disability count toward that 520.
The “able to earn” language is where many SEB disputes happen. Insurers hire vocational consultants who identify jobs on paper that you may not be physically able to perform, or that do not exist near Lafayette at the stated pay. Challenging those job lists with your doctor’s restrictions and real labor-market evidence is a regular part of our work.
Some injuries also involve someone other than your employer. A negligent driver who hits your work truck or a contractor whose unsafe site causes a fall can face a separate injury claim. Louisiana’s delictual claim period is generally two years for injuries on or after July 1, 2024, and fault now matters more than it once did: for causes of action arising on or after January 1, 2026, a claimant found 51 percent or more at fault recovers nothing, and lesser fault reduces the award proportionally. Coordinating the comp claim and the injury claim so one does not undermine the other is something we do for clients in both states.
Lafayette Parish Workers’ Compensation Questions Answered
Do I need a lawyer for a workers’ compensation claim in Lafayette Parish?
Not every claim needs 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, an attorney can change the outcome. The insurer has adjusters and lawyers 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 your case, and we are paid only if we recover benefits or a settlement. Attorney fees in Louisiana comp cases are limited and approved under state law.
How long do I have to report and file?
Report the injury to your employer within 30 days of the accident. A formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the date of injury, with a possible extension to three years from the last payment if benefits were paid. Because exceptions are narrow, speak with a lawyer early.
Which court hears my case?
Louisiana comp disputes go to the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration, not to a jury trial court. A workers’ compensation judge decides the case, and appeals go to the Louisiana courts of appeal. For Lafayette Parish, that is the Third Circuit.
Can I be fired for filing a 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.
What if the insurer says I had a pre-existing condition?
A pre-existing condition does not automatically end your claim. If your work caused, worsened, or accelerated the condition, you may still be entitled to benefits. Answering that argument with strong medical evidence is a core part of what we do.
My doctor recommended surgery and the insurer said no. What now?
You have 15 calendar days from receiving the written denial to file Form 1009 with the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration. The medical director then has 30 calendar days to rule. Do not let the deadline pass while you wait for the insurer to reconsider on its own.
I went back to work at lower pay. Am I still entitled to anything?
Possibly. Supplemental earnings benefits can make up part of the gap when you cannot earn 90 percent or more of your pre-injury wages, for up to 520 weeks including any temporary total disability weeks already paid.
What if my injury happened in a car or truck wreck while working?
You may have a comp claim against your employer’s insurer and a separate injury claim against the at-fault driver. The two claims interact, particularly when a settlement is reached, so decisions on one should be made with the other in mind.
If my loved one died in a workplace accident, what can the family do?
Death benefits may be available through comp, and a wrongful death claim against a third party may also exist. Louisiana’s wrongful death period is one year from the death or two years from the day injury was sustained, whichever is longer, so acting promptly protects every option.
Do you handle claims for Spanish-speaking workers?
Yes. Hablamos español, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with our team in their own language from the first call through the end of the case.
Serving Injured Workers Across Lafayette Parish and Acadiana
Our work starts in Lafayette Parish and reaches every community around it. We represent injured workers in the city of Lafayette, Scott, Youngsville, Broussard, Carencro, Duson, Milton, Maurice, Ossun, and the parish’s rural stretches, along with workers who commute into Lafayette from neighboring parishes such as Acadia, Vermilion, Iberia, St. Martin, and St. Landry. Workers hurt at area hospitals, refineries, fabrication yards, and construction sites, or on the highways connecting them, can reach us whether they live in Lafayette Parish or just beyond it.
Our Louisiana representation extends throughout South Louisiana and the rest of the state, including Baton Rouge, Lake Charles, New Orleans, and Shreveport, and we also handle claims across Mississippi, from Jackson and Madison to the Gulf Coast, Hattiesburg, Southaven, the Delta, and north Mississippi. Wherever in Louisiana you were hurt, the same deadlines and the same insurer tactics apply, and we are prepared to meet them.
Talk With a Lafayette Parish Workers’ Compensation Attorney Today
If you were hurt on the job and the insurer is denying, delaying, or shrinking your benefits, a Lafayette Parish workers’ compensation attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review what happened and tell you where your claim stands. 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 let us deal with the insurance company while you focus on getting well.
