Mississippi Work Injury Lawyer
A Mississippi work injury claim is not heard in a courtroom. It is decided by the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission, an agency run by three Governor-appointed commissioners, with evidentiary hearings before an Administrative Judge and review by the Full Commission in Jackson. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation firm that represents injured workers across Mississippi and South Louisiana, and if you need a Mississippi work injury lawyer, that Commission is where your claim will be won or lost.
That structure shapes everything about how a claim should be built. The Full Commission does not hold a new trial; it reviews the record that was made before the Administrative Judge. Whatever medical opinions, work history, and testimony are not in front of the Administrative Judge generally cannot be added later. Decisions you make in the first weeks, such as which doctor you see, what you tell the adjuster, and whether you document the injury in writing, often determine what that record looks like months down the road.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Mississippi Work Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured workers throughout Mississippi, from Jackson and Madison to the Gulf Coast, Hattiesburg, Southaven, and the Delta, as well as across Louisiana. The firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements for its clients. Consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of the case, you pay nothing unless benefits or a settlement are recovered, and the phones are answered 24 hours a day. Spanish-speaking clients can work with the team in their own language from the first call.
The results reflect the kinds of injuries Mississippi workers actually suffer: a $685,000 settlement 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 hurt when his work vehicle was struck, and $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns. 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, and attorneys Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher round out the team. Clients consistently describe the same things in their reviews: a lawyer who listened, who took on the insurance company directly, and who stayed reachable through hard stretches.
Work Injuries We Handle for Mississippi Workers
- Back, Neck, and Spine Injuries: Lumbar and cervical disc herniations are among the most common claims, and carriers frequently blame degenerative disc disease. The answer is medical evidence showing that years of physical labor or a specific incident caused or worsened the condition.
- Shoulder and Knee Injuries: Torn rotator cuffs, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears often require surgery, and employers sometimes try to recast them as old sports injuries. The firm has recovered settlements for a derrickhand with complex shoulder injuries from pulling large pipe and a diesel mechanic with a SLAP tear.
- Fractures: Broken feet, ankles, hips, and other bones can require specialists and complex surgical repair, with recovery time that stretches well past the first doctor’s note.
- Burns and Catastrophic Injuries: Oil rigs, industrial plants, and refinery-type job sites produce severe burns and life-altering trauma, where lifetime medical care and permanent disability are the central issues.
- Truck Driver and Delivery Injuries: Wrecks in work vehicles, loading injuries, and repetitive strain hit drivers hard, and a crash caused by another motorist can support a separate injury claim alongside comp benefits.
- Firefighter and First Responder Claims: Hypertension, heart and lung disease, hepatitis, hearing loss, posttraumatic stress, and cancers tied to the job raise causation questions that require careful medical proof.
- Construction, Ironwork, and General Labor: Falls, struck-by incidents, and cumulative trauma affect construction workers, ironworkers, nurses, and laborers statewide, many of whom were injured doing exactly what the job asked of them.
What to Do in the First Days After a Mississippi Work Injury
Report the injury to your employer as soon as it happens, and in writing if you can. Mississippi requires notice within 30 days of the accident, and waiting that long invites an argument that the injury did not happen at work or was not serious. Coverage begins on your first day of employment, with no waiting period and no minimum earnings requirement, so a brand-new hire is protected the same as a twenty-year employee. Get medical attention promptly, tell every provider that the injury happened at work, and describe it the same way each time, because inconsistencies in early medical records are what adjusters quote back to you later.
Separate from the notice deadline is the filing deadline. If the carrier has not paid disability benefits within two years of the injury, the right to benefits is barred unless a claim has been filed with the Commission within that period. In practice, a worker generally has two years from the date of injury, or from the last compensation payment, to file a Petition to Controvert with the Commission. Do not treat a carrier’s promise to “take care of everything” as a substitute for filing; payments can stop abruptly, and a lapsed deadline cannot be repaired.
Many workers make the same few mistakes. They give a recorded statement to the adjuster before understanding how it will be used, they return to full duty before their doctor has released them because the employer pressures them to, or they accept a modest lump sum without knowing what future surgery will cost. If your claim is contested, it proceeds to an evidentiary hearing before an Administrative Judge at the Commission, then, if needed, to the Full Commission in Jackson. A party unhappy with a final award can appeal within 30 days to the Mississippi Supreme Court, which often assigns the case to the Mississippi Court of Appeals, and review is limited to the record made before the Commission. That is why the firm builds the evidence from the very start rather than waiting for a denial.
Wage Benefits, Medical Care, and How Long They Last
Mississippi workers’ compensation pays for reasonable and necessary medical treatment related to the injury, and it replaces part of the wages you lose while you cannot work. For temporary total and permanent total disability, the weekly payment is two-thirds of your average weekly wage, up to a statutory weekly maximum that the Legislature sets and adjusts over time, and those payments generally cannot run longer than 450 weeks. Permanent partial disability in the cases that fall outside the scheduled-injury list is likewise capped at 450 weeks. Because the cap on weekly pay is fixed by law, higher earners often receive less than two-thirds of their actual wage, which makes the accuracy of your average weekly wage calculation worth checking closely.
Disputes tend to concentrate in three places: whether the injury is work-related at all, how much permanent disability the doctor assigns, and whether you can return to work at your prior earning level. A permanent impairment rating from a treating physician carries real weight, and so does the question of who your treating physician is. Settlement values depend heavily on those answers, along with the severity of the injury, your age and occupation, and what future treatment is likely to cost.
When Someone Besides Your Employer Caused the Injury
Workers’ compensation is generally the exclusive remedy against your employer, but it does not shield everyone else. If a negligent driver hit your work truck, or an outside contractor’s unsafe site caused your fall, you may have a separate personal injury claim against that third party in addition to your comp benefits. Those claims are governed by different deadlines and different rules, including Mississippi’s pure comparative negligence standard, which reduces recovery by your share of fault rather than barring it. The firm’s personal injury practice handles car and truck accidents, premises liability, and wrongful death, and coordinates the two claims so that a recovery in one does not undermine the other.
Questions Mississippi Workers Ask About Work Injury Claims
Do I need a lawyer for a Mississippi workers’ compensation claim?
Not every claim requires one, but if your 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 change the outcome. The carrier has adjusters and attorneys protecting its interests, and you should have someone doing the same for you.
How much does it cost to hire the firm?
Nothing up front. Consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of the case, and fees are collected only if benefits or a settlement are recovered. Attorney fees in workers’ compensation cases are also limited and approved under state law.
How soon must I report my injury?
Within 30 days of the accident under Mississippi law, though reporting immediately is far better. Late notice gives the carrier an easy reason to question your claim.
How long do I have to file a claim with the Commission?
Generally two years from the date of injury or the last compensation payment, by filing a Petition to Controvert. If no disability benefits were paid within two years of the injury and no claim was filed, the right to benefits is barred.
Am I covered if I was hurt in my first week on the job?
Yes. Coverage starts on the first day of employment, with no waiting period or minimum earnings requirement. Mississippi requires employers with five or more employees to carry coverage.
What if the insurer says my injury is a pre-existing condition?
A pre-existing condition does not automatically end a claim. If your job 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 the work.
Can my employer fire me for filing a claim?
Mississippi protects workers from retaliation for filing a comp claim. If you were let go or punished after reporting an injury, raise it in your consultation so the circumstances can be reviewed.
Who decides my case, and is it a jury trial?
No jury is involved. An Administrative Judge at the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission hears the evidence, and either side can seek review by the Full Commission, which examines the existing record rather than hearing the case fresh.
What happens if I disagree with the Full Commission’s decision?
You can appeal a final award within 30 days to the Mississippi Supreme Court, which may assign the case to the Mississippi Court of Appeals. The appeal rests on the record already made, so new evidence generally cannot be introduced at that stage.
Will I get my full paycheck while I am out of work?
No. Temporary and permanent total disability pay two-thirds of your average weekly wage, subject to a weekly maximum, and generally not beyond 450 weeks. That gap is one reason timely medical care and accurate wage records matter so much.
Can I still bring a claim if my injury developed slowly over time?
Yes. Repetitive-use injuries and occupational illnesses are compensable when the job caused or contributed to them. The sooner you connect the condition to your work with a physician and report it, the stronger the claim.
What if I was hurt by someone who does not work for my employer?
You may have a third-party injury claim in addition to comp benefits, such as against a negligent driver or an outside contractor. The two claims should be handled together so they do not conflict.
Representing Injured Workers Across Mississippi
The firm represents injured workers in every part of Mississippi. Clients come from Jackson and Madison, and from the surrounding communities of the capital region, as well as from Hattiesburg, the Gulf Coast, and Southaven and the northern corner of the state. The Delta and the rest of north Mississippi are part of that reach too, along with the oil field, industrial, and construction job sites that produce many of the state’s most serious injuries. Because the Commission handles every claim in the state through the same process, a worker hurt in the Delta is working with the same procedures and deadlines as one hurt on the Coast, and the firm brings that same approach to both. The team also represents workers across Louisiana, including Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Shreveport, and South Louisiana.
Speak With a Mississippi Work Injury Attorney Today
If you have been hurt on the job, you should not have to deal with the insurance company by yourself while you are trying to heal. A Mississippi work injury attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review your situation, explain your deadlines, and take over the dealings with your employer and its carrier. Call us any time, day or night; consultations are free, and you pay no fee unless we recover benefits for you. We help injured workers, and that is all we do.
