Southaven Head & Brain Injury Lawyer
A head injury at work rarely looks like the injury it is. A worker can walk away from a fall, a struck-by incident, or a collision with a headache and some fog, then spend the following months losing words, missing details on the job, and struggling with light, noise, and sleep. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured workers and accident victims in Southaven, throughout DeSoto County, and across Mississippi and Louisiana, and this kind of case, where the damage is real but hard to see, is one where the quality of the medical record decides the outcome.
That is the central problem with a Southaven head and brain injury lawyer search: the claim is rarely won or lost on whether you were hurt. It is decided by whether the injury was documented early, whether the right specialists were involved, and whether the insurer can credibly argue that your symptoms came from somewhere other than work. The decisions you make in the first few weeks, including what you tell the emergency physician, whether you report the incident in writing, and which doctors you see, shape everything that follows.
Southaven sits in the northwest corner of Mississippi, in a corridor of distribution centers, warehouses, trucking operations, and construction along the interstate and state routes that feed Memphis. Those are the settings where blunt trauma, falls from height, forklift and dock incidents, and highway collisions happen. A worker hurt in one of them may have a workers’ compensation claim, a separate injury claim against a negligent third party, or both.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Brain Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation firm for injured workers in Southaven, the rest of DeSoto County, and the communities of north Mississippi, the Delta, the Gulf Coast, and South Louisiana. Most lawyers who take comp cases are personal injury lawyers who handle a work injury only when one walks in. The firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients, works on a no recovery, no fee basis, advances the costs of the case, offers free consultations, answers its phones 24 hours a day, and speaks Spanish with clients from the first call to the end of the case.
Rob Lunsford, the 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 regularly appears before the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher round out the attorney team.
The results that matter most for a serious head injury case are the ones where the injury was disputed or complex. 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, and $385,000 for a project manager injured after being struck in his work vehicle. Those are spine and vehicle cases, not brain injury results, and we do not present them as such. What they show is the firm’s experience taking injuries that insurers minimize, building the medical proof, and pushing a claim to full value. Clients consistently describe that same pattern in their reviews: an attorney who listened, stayed in the fight with the insurance company, and kept them informed.
Where Head and Brain Injuries Come From in Workers’ Compensation Claims
- Falls from ladders, scaffolds, and loading docks: Construction sites and warehouse docks around Southaven produce falls where the head strikes concrete, steel, or equipment. Even a fall from a few feet can cause a concussion or bleeding in the brain.
- Struck-by incidents: Falling tools, shifting pallets, swinging loads, and objects dropped from racking can hit a worker in the head. These are covered in comp when they happen in the course of employment.
- Work-vehicle and truck collisions: Delivery drivers, truckers, and field employees working the interstate corridors near Memphis face crashes that cause whiplash-type brain injury with no visible head impact. A third party at fault can add a separate injury claim alongside comp.
- Forklift and heavy equipment accidents: Tip-overs, collisions with racking, and pedestrian strikes in distribution centers cause both direct head trauma and the jolting forces that injure the brain.
- Concussions with delayed symptoms: Memory problems, irritability, light and noise sensitivity, and trouble concentrating can surface days or weeks later. Insurers often seize on the gap, so the first medical visit and the incident report carry real weight.
- Combined injuries: A head injury often travels with neck, spine, shoulder, or facial injuries. The orthopedic injury gets treated first, and the cognitive symptoms get overlooked unless someone raises them with the doctor.
- Exposure and occupational conditions: Some neurological conditions develop from toxic exposure or repeated trauma over time rather than one event, which raises distinct questions about when the claim began and how it is proved.
What to Do After a Head Injury at Work in Southaven
Get medical care first, and tell every provider the injury happened at work and exactly how. Do not minimize it. Workers often say they feel fine at the scene and downplay symptoms, and that statement ends up in the chart. If you struck your head, lost consciousness even briefly, felt dazed, or noticed confusion, say so. Ask about follow-up with a neurologist or other specialist if symptoms continue. A single emergency room visit that records a “minor head bump” can later be quoted back to you.
Report the injury to your employer promptly and in writing. Mississippi requires notice to the employer within 30 days of the accident, and a late report gives the insurer an argument it does not need to have. Keep a copy. Separately, the deadline to protect your claim with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission is generally two years from the date of injury, or from the last compensation payment, through a Petition to Controvert. If benefits are being paid, that clock can behave differently, so do not assume you are safe. Louisiana workers should know the notice window is also 30 days, but a formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the accident.
Write down what you notice day by day: headaches, dizziness, missed words, trouble with tasks you once did easily, changes in sleep or mood. Brain injury claims are proved partly through accounts from people who see you, such as a spouse, a supervisor, or a coworker, so note who has observed the changes. Keep every bill, work restriction, and pay stub.
Be careful with the insurance adjuster. Recorded statements and broad medical releases are tools for narrowing your claim. Do not agree to return to full duty before your doctor clears you, and do not sign anything that closes out your claim without understanding what future care you are giving up. In Mississippi, comp claims are heard by the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission, not a court, first before an Administrative Judge and then, on appeal, before the Full Commission, which reviews the existing record rather than hearing the case fresh. A final award can then be appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court within 30 days, and the case may be assigned to the Mississippi Court of Appeals. Because the appeal rests on the record, the evidence you build at the start is the evidence you will live with.
How Insurers Contest Brain Injury Claims
Brain injuries are contested differently from a broken bone, because there is often no fracture to point to. Standard imaging can come back normal in a concussion or mild traumatic brain injury while the worker’s function is clearly changed. Insurers use that gap. They argue the symptoms are stress, depression, or a pre-existing condition, or that the worker has recovered because an early scan was clean.
The answer is medical proof that fits the injury: treating physicians who document the mechanism of injury, neuropsychological testing that measures memory, attention, and processing speed, and records that tie the onset of symptoms to the date of the accident. A pre-existing condition does not automatically end a claim. If work caused, worsened, or accelerated the condition, benefits can still be owed, and that argument is one the firm handles regularly in other injury types.
Benefits in Mississippi include reasonable and necessary medical care and wage replacement. For temporary and permanent total disability, wage loss is generally two-thirds of the average weekly wage, subject to a weekly maximum and not to exceed 450 weeks. Permanent partial disability for other cases is likewise limited to 450 weeks. A worker who cannot return to the old job because of cognitive limits, or who returns at reduced pay, has questions of disability and earning capacity that depend heavily on the medical evidence. The disability finding turns on what the brain injury does to your ability to work, not just on a diagnosis label.
When a Third Party Is Also Responsible
Workers’ compensation is the exclusive remedy against your employer, but it does not shield everyone else. If a negligent driver, an equipment manufacturer, or a contractor who is not your employer caused the injury, you may have a separate personal injury claim. That claim can reach damages comp does not, and the two cases have to be coordinated so that a settlement in one does not damage the other. Mississippi follows pure comparative negligence, which reduces recovery by your share of fault rather than barring it, and most negligence claims carry a three-year limit, though claims against a county or governmental body carry a much shorter one-year limit with notice requirements. The firm’s personal injury practice covers car and truck accidents, premises liability, and wrongful death, and it lines up the comp claim and the injury claim so they work together.
Questions About Head and Brain Injury Claims
Is a head injury at work covered by workers’ compensation in Mississippi?
Yes, if it arose out of and in the course of your employment. Coverage begins on the first day of the job, with no waiting period, and applies to employers who meet the law’s coverage requirements. That includes concussions, skull injuries, and more serious traumatic brain injuries.
How long do I have to report a work head injury?
Report it to your employer within 30 days of the accident, in writing if you can. Do it immediately when possible, since delayed reports invite disputes about whether the injury happened at work at all.
How long do I have to file a claim in Mississippi?
Generally two years from the date of injury or from the last compensation payment, by filing a Petition to Controvert with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. Because exceptions depend on whether benefits were paid, speak with an attorney well before that period runs.
What benefits can I receive for a brain injury?
Medical treatment that is reasonable and necessary, wage replacement while you cannot work, and compensation for permanent disability where the injury leaves lasting limits. Wage-loss benefits are generally two-thirds of your average weekly wage up to a statutory weekly cap.
Will I need a lawyer for a concussion claim?
Not every claim requires one. If your benefits are denied, delayed, reduced, or cut off, or if your symptoms are keeping you out of work for a long stretch, an attorney can make a major difference. The insurer has adjusters and lawyers working for it.
Does a normal CT scan or MRI mean I do not have a brain injury?
No. Standard imaging often looks normal after a concussion or mild traumatic brain injury. Neurological examination, neuropsychological testing, and documented changes in function can establish the injury even when the scan is clean.
What if my symptoms did not appear until weeks after the accident?
Delayed symptoms are common with brain injuries, and they do not bar a claim. They do make early documentation important, so report the incident, mention any head impact to your doctor, and note when each symptom first appeared. Insurers will point to the gap, and the record is how you answer it.
Can the insurance company make me go to its own doctor?
Insurers can request an independent medical evaluation, and the doctor they choose often reaches conclusions favorable to them. Your own treating physician’s records carry weight, and a lawyer can challenge an evaluation that overlooks cognitive symptoms or ignores your history.
Can I sue someone besides my employer for a work-related brain injury?
If a party other than your employer, such as a negligent driver or a contractor, caused the injury, you may bring a separate injury claim alongside comp. Mississippi’s comparative negligence rule reduces your recovery by your percentage of fault. Most negligence claims carry a three-year limit, while claims against governmental bodies are limited to one year.
Can I be fired for filing a claim after a head injury?
Mississippi and Louisiana both protect 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 firm can review your options.
What if I was hurt in Louisiana but live in Southaven?
The state where the injury occurred and where your employment is based can control which workers’ compensation system applies. The firm handles claims in both Mississippi and Louisiana, so tell us where you were working when you were hurt, and we will sort out which law governs. Louisiana carries its own deadlines, including a one-year window for a formal claim.
Serving Southaven and the Surrounding Head Injury Clients Across DeSoto County and Beyond
Our work for head and brain injury clients begins in Southaven and reaches across DeSoto County, including Olive Branch, Horn Lake, Hernando, Walls, Nesbit, and Lake Cormorant. We also represent workers from Byhalia and Coldwater along the corridor east and south, and clients in neighboring Tunica, Tate, Marshall, and Panola counties across north Mississippi. Many of the people we help work in the warehouses, trucking terminals, and construction sites that surround the interstate system near Memphis.
The firm’s reach extends from there across Mississippi, including Jackson, Madison, Hattiesburg, the Gulf Coast, and the Delta, and into Louisiana, including New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, and Shreveport, as well as South Louisiana and north Louisiana. Whether your injury happened on a Southaven job site or elsewhere in either state, the same team of workers’ compensation attorneys can take your claim before the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission or the Louisiana Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration and appeal when a ruling is wrong.
Talk With a Southaven Brain Injury Attorney Today
If a blow to the head at work has changed how you think, remember, or function, do not let an insurance adjuster define your injury for you. A Southaven head and brain injury attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review how the injury happened, get the right medical evidence in place, and pursue the medical care and wage benefits you are owed. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, consultations are free, and you pay no fee unless we recover benefits for you. Call today and tell us what happened.
