Greater New Orleans Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
Getting your medical care approved, your weekly checks flowing, and your claim resolved fairly is the whole point of a comp case, and in the Greater New Orleans area it rarely happens on its own. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC handles denied, delayed, and cut-off claims for injured workers across South Louisiana, and the firm’s attorneys work every day toward the same result: treatment you can count on and wage benefits the law says you are owed. If you are searching for a Greater New Orleans workers’ compensation lawyer, the first thing to know is that the deadlines and the forum in Louisiana work differently than most people expect.
Your claim does not go to a jury. It goes to a workers’ compensation judge in the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration, and Louisiana lets you choose where it is heard: the parish where you were hurt, the parish where you lived when you were hurt, or the parish where your employer has its principal place of business. For a worker injured in Orleans or Jefferson but living across the lake in St. Tammany, that choice can matter, and it is one of the first things we sort out with a new client.
The port, the refineries along the river, the shipyards, hospitals, hotels, restaurants, and construction crews rebuilding and expanding around the region produce a steady stream of injuries. Most of those claims start the same way, with an adjuster who is friendly for a few weeks and then suddenly is not.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Greater New Orleans Comp Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation law firm that represents injured workers throughout Louisiana and Mississippi, including New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Shreveport, and communities across South Louisiana. The attorneys bring more than 75 years of combined experience, the firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients, and consultations are free, the firm advances case costs, and you owe nothing unless benefits or a settlement are recovered. Phones are answered around the clock, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with the team in their own language from the first call.
Rob Lunsford, the 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 for Workers’ Compensation Law, Claimants, in Jackson. Andrew Rueff has tried dozens of jury and bench trials to verdict and has argued appeals in the state appellate courts. The team also includes Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher, and Louisiana-licensed attorneys here handle claims before workers’ compensation judges and take appeals when a ruling is wrong.
Results give the best sense of what this experience produces. The firm has recovered $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 he was struck in his work vehicle, and $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns. Clients consistently describe a team that listened, answered their questions, and stood up to the insurance company, and one reviewer called the attorneys a lifeline during a hard stretch. Every case is different and past results do not guarantee an outcome, but they show the kinds of injuries and fights this firm is built for.
Injuries and Claim Types That Come Out of the New Orleans Workforce
- Back, Neck, and Spine Injuries: Lumbar and cervical disc herniations are among the most common comp claims, and insurers routinely blame degenerative disc disease. Warehouse, port, hospital, and construction work wears on the spine, and we build the medical record to show the job caused or worsened the condition.
- Shoulder and Knee Injuries: Rotator cuff tears, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears often follow overhead work, heavy lifting, or a fall from equipment. Employers sometimes call these old sports injuries, and the medical evidence has to answer that.
- Fractures: Broken feet, ankles, and hips from falls on job sites, loading docks, and slick industrial floors can mean specialists, surgery, and months away from work.
- Burns and Catastrophic Injuries: Plant, refinery, and rig work carries fire and explosion risk. The firm has recovered a $221,000 settlement for an oil rig worker with severe burns to his lower extremities.
- Truck and Delivery Driver Injuries: Drivers hurt in wrecks while working may have both a comp claim and a claim against the other driver. The firm has handled cases for truck drivers with back and meniscus injuries and for a delivery driver with a lumbar injury.
- Firefighter and First Responder Claims: Heart and lung disease, hypertension, hepatitis, hearing loss, posttraumatic stress, and job-related cancer fall within the claims the firm handles for first responders.
- Third-Party and Wrongful Death Claims: When a negligent contractor, driver, or property owner contributed to the injury, or a worker dies on the job, claims beyond comp may exist and need to be coordinated with the benefits claim.
What to Do in the First Weeks After a Louisiana Work Injury
Report the injury to your employer right away, in writing if you can. Louisiana law bars a compensation proceeding unless the employer receives notice within 30 days of the injury, so a verbal comment to a supervisor weeks later is a weak foundation. Ask for medical treatment, tell every provider the injury happened at work, and keep copies of anything you sign. Do not give a recorded statement to the insurer before you understand what it will be used for; adjusters ask questions designed to find a pre-existing condition or a gap in the story.
The formal filing deadline is separate. A claim generally must be filed within one year of the date of injury, though if comp payments have been made the window can extend to three years from the last payment. Do not rely on that extension without checking, because the date it runs from is easy to get wrong.
Your case will be heard by a workers’ compensation judge at the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration. The district office that serves New Orleans is in New Orleans, and Jefferson, St. Tammany, and other nearby parishes have their own district arrangements, so which office hears your case depends on the parish you choose under the venue rules. One shortcut deserves attention: when the insurer denies a specific treatment through utilization review, you have only 15 calendar days from written notice to file Form 1009, after which the OWC medical director has 30 calendar days to decide. If you disagree with that decision, you have 45 days from its issuance to file Form 1008. Those clocks run fast and do not pause for surgery recovery.
Common mistakes are predictable: waiting to report, going back to work before the doctor releases you, skipping appointments, posting about physical activity on social media, and accepting a quick settlement before maximum medical improvement. A Greater New Orleans workers’ comp attorney can review the file before any of those steps cause damage.
How Wage Benefits and Appeals Work Under Louisiana Law
While you are completely unable to work, wage replacement is a percentage of your average weekly wage, subject to a weekly maximum that is set each year based on the statewide average wage and fixed by the date of your accident. If you can return to work but earn less because of the injury, supplemental earnings benefits come into play. They equal two-thirds of the difference between your pre-injury wages and what you earn or are able to earn, and they apply when you cannot earn at least 90 percent of what you made before. Those benefits can continue until you are released to full duty, you return to pre-injury earnings, or you reach the 520-week maximum, with temporary total disability weeks counting toward that total.
Disputes over what you “are able to earn” are where many SEB fights happen. Insurers hire vocational consultants who point to jobs on paper that your restrictions, your location, or your training may not allow. We look at those reports closely.
When a workers’ compensation judge issues a final judgment, either side can appeal to the appropriate circuit court of appeal. Louisiana’s courts of appeal are divided by parish: the Fourth Circuit covers Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard, the Fifth Circuit covers Jefferson, St. Charles, St. James, and St. John the Baptist, and the First Circuit covers parishes such as St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Lafourche, and Terrebonne. An appeal that suspends the judgment must be filed within 30 days, and one that does not must be filed within 60 days, running from the day after the judgment was signed or notice was mailed, whichever is later. After that, a party can ask the Louisiana Supreme Court to take the case by writ within 30 days of notice of the appellate judgment.
Common Questions About Greater New Orleans Workers’ Comp Claims
Do I need a lawyer for a workers’ compensation claim in the New Orleans area?
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 workers’ compensation 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 the firm?
Nothing up front. Consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of your case, and fees are collected only if benefits or a settlement are recovered. Attorney fees in comp cases are also limited and approved under state law.
How soon do I have to report my injury?
Tell your employer immediately and no later than 30 days after the injury. Louisiana law does not allow a compensation proceeding to go forward without that notice, so waiting is a risk you do not need to take.
How long do I have to file a formal claim?
Generally one year from the date of the accident. If compensation payments have been made, the deadline can extend to three years from the last payment, but that rule has traps, so get the dates reviewed by an attorney early.
Can I pick my own doctor?
Louisiana gives you a choice of treating physician in many circumstances, but the rules on changes and on specialists are technical. Ask before switching providers, because an unauthorized change can lead to unpaid bills and a fight over whether the treatment counts.
What can I do if the insurer denies a surgery or treatment my doctor recommended?
You can challenge the denial through the utilization review process. The deadline is short: Form 1009 must be filed within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice of the denial. Missing it can cost you the easiest route to getting the treatment approved.
What if I live in St. Tammany or Jefferson Parish but got hurt in New Orleans?
You generally elect where the case is heard: the parish where the injury happened, the parish where you lived at the time, or the parish of your employer’s principal place of business. The choice can affect convenience and which appellate circuit would review the case.
Can my employer fire me for filing a claim?
Louisiana protects workers from retaliation for filing a comp claim. If you were let go or disciplined after reporting an injury, tell your attorney so the circumstances can be reviewed.
My injury was partly caused by an old condition. Is my claim dead?
No. A pre-existing condition does not automatically end a claim. If your work caused, aggravated, or accelerated the condition, benefits may still be owed, and the answer usually comes down to the medical evidence.
If a driver hit me while I was working, can I sue them and still get comp?
Often yes. Comp covers your medical care and wage loss regardless of fault, and a separate claim against the negligent driver may be available. For a non-fatal injury, the Louisiana time limit for most injury claims arising on or after July 1, 2024 is two years, while earlier injuries stayed under the old one-year period. Also, for causes of action arising on or after January 1, 2026, a claimant found 51 percent or more at fault recovers nothing in the third-party claim, so how the wreck is documented matters.
What happens if a worker dies from a job injury?
Death benefits may be available to dependents under the comp system, and wrongful death claims against third parties may also exist. Wrongful death actions generally must be brought within one year of the death or two years from the injury, whichever is longer, so family members should speak with an attorney quickly.
Does the firm help Spanish-speaking workers?
Yes. Hablamos español, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with the team in their own language from the first call to the end of the case.
Serving Injured Workers Across Orleans, Jefferson, and Surrounding Parishes
The firm represents injured workers from New Orleans and the neighborhoods around it, including the French Quarter, Uptown, Mid-City, Gentilly, New Orleans East, Algiers, and the Lower Ninth Ward, and across the river and parish lines into Metairie, Kenner, Harahan, Gretna, Marrero, Harvey, and Westwego. We also serve workers in Chalmette and the rest of St. Bernard Parish, Belle Chasse in Plaquemines Parish, and communities along the river corridor such as LaPlace, Laplace’s neighbors in St. John the Baptist Parish, and the St. Charles Parish towns of Destrehan and Luling.
Across Lake Pontchartrain, we handle claims from Slidell, Covington, Mandeville, and elsewhere in St. Tammany Parish, and we help workers in Hammond and Tangipahoa Parish, Houma and Thibodaux in the bayou parishes, and the rest of South Louisiana, including Baton Rouge, Lafayette, and Lake Charles. Claims also arise in north Louisiana, including Shreveport, and the firm represents injured workers statewide. Whether you were hurt on a dock, in a hospital, on a plant floor, or on a job site anywhere in this region, our Louisiana workers’ compensation team can review your situation.
Talk With a New Orleans Workers’ Compensation Attorney Today
If your claim has been denied, your checks have stopped, or you are being pushed back to work before your doctor says you are ready, a New Orleans workers’ compensation attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review where you stand and tell you what deadlines are running. The phones are answered 24 hours a day, the consultation is free, and you pay no fee unless we recover benefits for you. Call today and let the team take on the insurance company while you focus on getting better.
