Meridian Personal Injury Lawyer
Getting hurt because of someone else’s carelessness usually comes down to two things: getting the medical care you need, and getting paid for what the injury takes from you. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a law firm that represents injured people in Mississippi and Louisiana, and if you are looking for a Meridian personal injury lawyer, we handle car and truck accidents, premises liability, wrongful death, and the personal injury claims that grow out of on-the-job injuries. We serve Meridian and Lauderdale County and communities across east Mississippi, along with the rest of both states.
Meridian sits where Interstates 20 and 59 meet, which means a steady flow of tractor-trailers moving between Atlanta, Birmingham, Jackson, and New Orleans. Add the logistics, manufacturing, healthcare, and military-adjacent jobs that fill the area, and a large share of serious injuries here involve someone who was working at the time. That detail changes how a claim should be built, and it is where our firm’s background matters most.
When a Meridian Injury Involves Both Work and a Negligent Third Party
Most injury firms treat a work injury and an accident claim as separate problems. They are not. If a driver rear-ends your company truck on I-20, or a subcontractor leaves an unguarded opening on a job site and you fall, you can have two claims running at once: workers’ compensation against your employer’s insurer, and a personal injury claim against the person who caused the harm.
The two claims interact. Workers’ compensation pays medical bills and a portion of lost wages without regard to fault, but it does not pay for pain, suffering, or the full measure of lost earning capacity. A claim against the negligent third party can. The insurer that paid your comp benefits will often assert a right to be reimbursed from what you recover, so settling one claim carelessly can shrink the other. A Meridian injury attorney who handles only one side of this will miss money or create a conflict. Coordinating them is routine work for us, because workers’ compensation has been the center of our practice for years.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Meridian Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured workers and accident victims throughout Mississippi and Louisiana. Our attorneys bring more than 75 years of combined experience, and we have recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients. Workers’ compensation is the center of our practice, which sets us apart from firms that take a work injury only when one happens to walk in.
Rob Lunsford, our 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 successfully tried dozens of jury and bench trials to verdict and has argued personal injury and insurance cases before the state appellate courts. Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher round out the attorney team.
The results reflect that depth. We secured $685,000 for a surgical tech with a lower back injury and $600,000 for a construction worker with a complex back injury. For a project manager struck in his work vehicle and left with back injuries, the settlement was $385,000, exactly the kind of crash-plus-comp case that arises on Meridian’s highways. We also recovered $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns. Clients consistently describe a team that listens, stays in contact, and goes up against the insurance company for them.
We work on a no recovery, no fee basis, consultations are free, we advance the costs of your case, and our phones are answered 24 hours a day. Hablamos español.
Types of Injury Claims We Handle for Meridian Residents
- Tractor-Trailer and Commercial Truck Crashes: Interstate 20 and Interstate 59 converge in Meridian, and freight traffic is constant. These cases can involve the driver, the trucking company, a broker, or a maintenance contractor, and the carrier’s insurer often starts investigating before you have left the hospital.
- Car and Pickup Collisions: Crashes on Highway 19, Highway 45, and city arterials produce back, neck, and head injuries. Mississippi uses pure comparative negligence, so your recovery is reduced by your share of fault rather than barred.
- Work Vehicle Accidents: Delivery drivers, field technicians, and sales staff who are hit while on the clock may have both a comp claim and a liability claim against the at-fault driver.
- Premises Liability: Falls in stores, apartment complexes, parking lots, and hospital or industrial facilities, where a property owner failed to fix or warn about a hazard. Claims against a county or government agency carry a one-year limit and require formal notice.
- Construction and Industrial Site Injuries: Falls, struck-by incidents, and equipment failures where a contractor or equipment maker other than your employer shares responsibility.
- Back, Neck, and Spine Injuries: Disc herniations and fractures that require surgery and long recovery, often met with the argument that the condition was already there.
- Burns and Catastrophic Injuries: Plant, rig, and electrical injuries that require specialty care and permanent adjustments to work and home life.
- Wrongful Death: Claims by families after a fatal crash or workplace incident, with different time limits for negligence and intentional acts.
What to Do After an Injury in the Meridian Area
Get medical care first, and tell every provider exactly how the injury happened, including that it happened at work if it did. Records created in the first days are the ones an insurer will read most closely. Follow the treatment plan and keep appointments, because gaps in care are routinely used to argue the injury was minor.
If you were hurt on the job, report it to your employer in writing as soon as possible. Mississippi requires notice to the employer within 30 days of the accident, and a claim must be filed with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission within two years of the injury or the last compensation payment. Coverage begins on your first day of employment. The Commission, not a court, administers these claims, with hearings before an Administrative Judge and review by the Full Commission in Jackson. A final award can be appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court within 30 days, and the review is limited to the record already made, so the evidence you build early is the evidence you will have.
For a claim against a negligent driver or property owner, Mississippi generally allows three years from the date of injury for actions with no shorter period, with a discovery rule for latent injuries. Wrongful death based on negligence also carries three years, while intentional acts carry one. Cases that stay in state court in this area are filed in the circuit court of the county where the accident happened or the defendant is found; larger interstate disputes can land in federal court in the Southern or Northern District of Mississippi.
Gather what you can: photographs of the scene and your injuries, the police report, names of witnesses, pay stubs, and every medical bill. Do not give a recorded statement to an adverse insurer or sign a medical release that reaches back years before the incident. And do not post about your activity online; insurers watch.
How the Pre-Existing Condition Argument Gets Used and Answered
In back, neck, shoulder, and knee cases, the first thing an adjuster reaches for is an old record. Degenerative changes show up on nearly every adult’s imaging, and insurers try to turn that into a claim that the crash or job caused nothing. The law does not treat it that way. If an incident aggravated, accelerated, or made a prior condition symptomatic, it can still be compensable.
Answering the argument takes work: treating physicians who will state causation clearly, comparison of your function before and after, testimony about the physical demands of your job, and, where needed, independent medical opinions. This is the part of these cases where our focus on workers’ compensation pays off, because the same evidence drives both the comp claim and the injury claim.
Meridian Personal Injury Questions Answered
Do I need a lawyer after a car accident in Meridian?
If no one was hurt and the damage is minor, you may not. If you were injured, if fault is disputed, if a commercial vehicle was involved, or if the insurer’s offer does not cover your treatment, a lawyer can change the result significantly.
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 for you.
How long do I have to file an injury lawsuit in Mississippi?
Most negligence claims must be filed within three years of when the cause of action accrued. Claims against counties and government agencies have a one-year limit and require notice. Do not wait to find out which rule applies to you.
What if I was partly at fault for the accident?
Mississippi follows pure comparative negligence. Your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault, but you are not barred from recovering even if you were mostly responsible.
I was hurt while working. Can I sue someone besides my employer?
Often, yes. Workers’ compensation generally limits claims against your employer, but a negligent driver, a contractor on a shared site, or an equipment manufacturer is a separate party you may be able to pursue.
How long do I have to report a work injury in Mississippi?
Notify your employer within 30 days of the accident, and file a claim with the Workers’ Compensation Commission within two years of the injury or the last compensation payment.
Will my workers’ comp insurer get paid back out of my injury settlement?
Frequently the comp carrier has a reimbursement interest in what you recover from a third party. How that interest is handled affects what you keep, which is why the two claims should be negotiated together.
What if the trucking company says its driver did nothing wrong?
Fault is decided on evidence: driver logs, vehicle inspection and maintenance records, electronic data, and witness accounts. Commercial carriers often preserve their own version quickly, so early action to request and protect records matters.
Can I recover anything if a family member died in a crash or on the job?
Mississippi allows wrongful death claims by eligible family members. Negligence claims generally have a three-year limit and intentional acts one year. Noneconomic damages are capped in most wrongful death cases, but the cap does not apply to economic losses. A death on the job can also support workers’ compensation death benefits.
Will my health insurance cover treatment while my claim is pending?
Often it will, and using it keeps you from going without care while liability is argued. Be aware the health plan may seek reimbursement from a settlement. If the injury was work related, workers’ compensation, not your health plan, is supposed to pay for the treatment.
Does a Louisiana accident change anything if I live in Meridian?
It can. The law of the place where the accident happened usually governs, and Louisiana’s deadlines and fault rules differ from Mississippi’s. We represent clients in both states, so a crash across the line does not require starting over with a new firm.
Serving Meridian and Lauderdale County Injury Clients Across East Mississippi
We represent injured people in Meridian and throughout Lauderdale County, including the communities of Marion, Collinsville, Toomsuba, Lost Gap, and Zero. We also work with clients in neighboring Kemper, Neshoba, Newton, Clarke, and Wayne counties, in towns such as DeKalb, Philadelphia, Union, Newton, Quitman, and Waynesboro, as well as Hattiesburg and the surrounding area to the south.
Beyond east Mississippi, our attorneys serve Jackson, Madison, the Gulf Coast, Southaven, and the Delta, and we handle claims across Louisiana, including New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, and Shreveport. Wherever the accident happened, if it involved a workplace, a commercial vehicle, or a negligent property owner, we can evaluate the whole case.
Speak With a Meridian Personal Injury Attorney Today
If you were hurt in a crash, a fall, or a workplace incident, the insurance companies already have people protecting their interests. A Meridian personal injury attorney from Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review your situation, explain how a work injury and an accident claim fit together, and handle the insurers so you can focus on recovery. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, consultations are free, and you pay no fee unless we recover for you. Call us to talk through your case.
