Baton Rouge Car Accident Lawyer
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured people in Baton Rouge and across South Louisiana, and that includes drivers and passengers hurt in crashes caused by someone else. Our practice is built around injured workers, and a surprising number of serious wrecks happen while the victim is on the clock: a delivery driver rear-ended on Airline Highway, a project manager struck in a company vehicle, a truck driver hit by a distracted motorist.
A Baton Rouge car accident lawyer has to deal with two things at once in those cases: the at-fault driver’s insurer and, when the crash happened during work, the workers’ compensation carrier. Handled separately, those claims can collide. Handled together, they reinforce each other.
Louisiana also changed its fault rules recently. For crashes on or after January 1, 2026, a driver found 51 percent or more at fault recovers nothing. That single rule gives insurers a new reason to push blame onto you from the first phone call.
The 51 Percent Rule and What It Does to Your Claim
Before the change, Louisiana followed pure comparative fault: if you were 30 percent responsible, your recovery dropped by 30 percent. Under Civil Code article 2323 as amended, that still holds when your share is below 51 percent. Cross that line and the claim is barred entirely. Juries are now told this directly, so they know a high fault finding against you ends the case.
The old rule applies to causes of action that arose before January 1, 2026. Which version governs your wreck depends on the crash date, and it matters a great deal.
In practice, this means the fight over fault is the whole case. Adjusters will point to a lane change, a sudden stop, a phone in your hand, a seat belt, or a few miles over the limit. Photographs of the scene, vehicle damage patterns, traffic camera footage, and independent witness accounts are what keep your percentage low.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Baton Rouge Car Wreck Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a Mississippi and Louisiana law firm that serves Baton Rouge, the rest of South Louisiana, and communities across both states. We also handle personal injury cases, including car and truck accidents, premises liability, and wrongful death. Clients pay nothing up front, consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of the case, and we are paid only if we recover. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, and we speak Spanish.
That background matters in a crash case because so many collisions involve a working person. Our results include a $385,000 settlement for a project manager with back injuries after he was struck in his work vehicle, and a $190,000 settlement for a truck driver who hurt his lower back in a wreck on the job. Larger back injury results include $685,000 for a surgical tech and $600,000 for a construction worker. Spinal and orthopedic injuries are the ones that follow people out of the emergency room and into years of treatment.
Rob Lunsford, 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, which matters when an insurer will not make a fair offer. Clients consistently describe the same thing in their reviews: attorneys who listen, communicate, and stay in the fight with the insurance company.
Crash Types and Injuries We See in Baton Rouge Cases
- Interstate and Bridge Corridor Collisions: Traffic funneling through I-10, I-12, and onto the Mississippi River bridge slows to a crawl and then breaks loose, producing chain-reaction rear-end crashes with neck and back injuries.
- Commercial Truck Wrecks: Industrial traffic serving the river corridor and the petrochemical plants puts heavy trucks on the same roads as commuters, and these crashes bring in trucking companies, drivers, and their carriers as liable parties.
- Work-Vehicle Accidents: A driver hurt while running a delivery route, hauling equipment, or traveling between job sites may have both a workers’ compensation claim and a claim against the at-fault motorist.
- Disc Herniations and Spine Injuries: Impact forces regularly produce lumbar and cervical herniations, and insurers answer with degenerative disc arguments that need strong medical evidence to counter.
- Shoulder and Knee Trauma: Bracing against the wheel or striking the dash can cause rotator cuff tears, labral injuries, and meniscus tears that require surgical repair.
- Fractures: Ankles, feet, hips, and other bones broken in a collision often mean specialist care and long recovery away from work.
- Wrongful Death: When a crash takes a life, surviving family members have a limited window to act, and the deadline rules differ depending on the date of injury and death.
What to Do After a Baton Rouge Collision
Get medical care first, even if you feel mostly fine. Adrenaline hides injuries, and a gap between the wreck and your first treatment becomes an insurer’s favorite argument. Ask the responding officer for the report number, and photograph the vehicles, the road, any skid marks, and your visible injuries before anything is moved or repaired.
Do not give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer. Their questions are designed to establish fault, and under the 51 percent rule, an offhand remark about “not seeing” the other car can end up quoted back to you. Keep your own insurer informed of the basic facts, and send everything else to your attorney.
If you were working when the crash happened, tell your employer within 30 days. That notice rule is separate from your injury claim and it is strict. A compensation claim must then be filed within one year of the accident, though the deadline can extend to three years from the last payment if benefits were paid. Louisiana workers’ compensation disputes are heard by the Office of Workers’ Compensation, and Baton Rouge cases are handled through that district office. Appeals from that district go to the Louisiana First Circuit Court of Appeal.
For the liability claim against the at-fault driver, Louisiana now gives two years from the day of injury for crashes on or after July 1, 2024. Earlier crashes remain under the old one-year period. If you are unsure which applies, assume the shorter one and call us now.
One mistake we see repeatedly: signing medical releases that give the insurer your entire history. A broad release lets an adjuster hunt for an old back complaint to blame. Let your attorney handle what gets shared.
When a Crash Is Also a Workers’ Compensation Claim
Compensation benefits do not depend on who caused the wreck. If you were hurt in the course of your job, you can receive medical treatment and wage benefits even if you were partly at fault. Temporary total disability, supplemental earnings benefits when you return at lower pay, and permanent disability benefits all remain available.
Supplemental earnings benefits are calculated at two-thirds of the gap between your pre-injury wages and what you earn or are able to earn, when you cannot earn at least 90 percent of what you made before. They can last until you return to full duty at your old wage or reach the 520-week maximum, with temporary total disability weeks counting toward that total. Weekly compensation rates are set by the date of the accident and adjust annually.
The carrier that paid your compensation benefits will usually claim reimbursement from any third-party recovery. Structuring the two claims so you keep as much as the law allows is exactly the kind of coordination that separates a firm built around comp work from a general practice.
Questions About Baton Rouge Car Accident Claims
How long do I have to sue after a car accident in Louisiana?
For crashes on or after July 1, 2024, the deadline is two years from the day you were injured. Crashes before that date remain under the former one-year period. Workers’ compensation claims run on a separate clock.
What if I was partly at fault?
If your share of fault is below 51 percent, your recovery is reduced by that percentage. At 51 percent or more, you recover nothing for crashes on or after January 1, 2026. Earlier crashes still follow pure comparative fault.
Do I need a lawyer for a minor fender bender?
If you were not hurt and the damage is small, you may not. If you have back, neck, shoulder, or knee symptoms, or the insurer is disputing fault, representation can change the outcome substantially.
How much does it cost to hire your firm?
Nothing up front. Consultations are free, we advance the case costs, and our fee comes only from a recovery.
What if the crash happened while I was working?
You may have both a workers’ compensation claim and a personal injury claim against the other driver. Report the injury to your employer within 30 days, and call us so the two claims are built to work together.
Will my health insurance cover treatment while my claim is pending?
Often yes, though your health insurer may later seek reimbursement from a settlement. If the injury is work-related, the compensation carrier should be paying for reasonable and necessary treatment instead.
Can the insurance company blame my pre-existing back condition?
They will try. A prior condition does not end a claim if the crash caused, worsened, or accelerated it. Medical records that show your function before and after the wreck are the answer.
What if the at-fault driver has no insurance?
Your own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage may apply. We review your policy early, since the available coverage often shapes the whole strategy.
What happens if a family member died in a crash?
Louisiana law allows a wrongful death action within one year of the death or two years from the day injury was sustained, whichever is longer. A death claim based on medical malpractice stays limited to one year.
Can I be fired for filing a workers’ compensation claim after a work crash?
Louisiana prohibits retaliation for filing a compensation claim. If you were let go or punished after reporting your injury, tell us at your consultation.
Do you take cases outside Baton Rouge?
Yes. We represent injured people throughout Louisiana and Mississippi.
Serving Baton Rouge Car Accident Clients and Neighboring Communities
We represent clients across East Baton Rouge Parish, including downtown, Mid City, the Garden District, Southdowns, Perkins Road, Shenandoah, Sherwood Forest, and the LSU area. We also serve Baker, Zachary, and Central, along with neighboring communities such as Port Allen in West Baton Rouge Parish, Denham Springs and Walker in Livingston Parish, Prairieville and Gonzales in Ascension Parish, and Plaquemine in Iberville Parish.
Our work extends across South Louisiana, from Lafayette and Lake Charles to New Orleans, and statewide to Shreveport. We also represent clients in Mississippi, from Jackson and Madison to the Gulf Coast, Hattiesburg, Southaven, and the Delta.
Talk With a Baton Rouge Car Accident Attorney Today
The fault fight starts the moment the insurer calls you. If you need a Baton Rouge car accident attorney who understands both the crash claim and the workers’ compensation claim that may sit beside it, call our team. Consultations are free, our phones are answered around the clock, and you pay no fee unless we recover for you.
