Biloxi Work Injury Lawyer
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured workers in Biloxi and across the Mississippi Gulf Coast, handling workers’ compensation claims that have been denied, delayed, or cut off before they should have been. A Biloxi work injury lawyer spends a great deal of time on a narrow set of problems: an adjuster who says the accident did not happen at work, a doctor chosen by the carrier who clears you for duty before you can lift your arm, or a benefit check that simply stops arriving.
Biloxi’s economy puts a lot of people in physically demanding jobs. Casino resort staff, kitchen and housekeeping crews, shipyard and fabrication workers, seafood and dock workers, hospital nurses, construction crews rebuilding along the coast, and truck drivers moving freight along I-10 and Highway 90 all face the kinds of injuries that become comp claims: herniated discs, torn shoulders, shattered ankles, and burns. Mississippi law covers these workers, and the benefits are real, but getting them usually means dealing with deadlines and an insurance carrier that has its own lawyers.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Gulf Coast Work Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation firm serving injured workers throughout Mississippi and Louisiana, including Biloxi and the Gulf Coast. Most attorneys who accept comp cases are personal injury lawyers who take 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, offers free consultations, advances the costs of the case, answers its phones 24 hours a day, and speaks Spanish with clients from the first call to the end of the case (hablamos español).
The team is led by Rob Lunsford, Founding Partner, who has spent his entire legal career representing injured workers, alongside partners Brad Baskin and Jennifer Priebe. Brad and Jennifer 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.
The results reflect the kind of injuries Biloxi workers 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 injured when he was struck in his work vehicle, and $221,000 for an oil rig worker with severe burns to the lower extremities. Clients consistently describe a team that listens, communicates, and stays with them against the insurance company.
Injuries and Claim Types We Handle for Biloxi Workers
- Back, Neck, and Spine Injuries: Lumbar and cervical disc herniations are among the most common comp injuries, especially for housekeepers, line cooks, dock workers, and laborers who lift all day. When a carrier blames degenerative disc disease, medical evidence and work history can show that the job caused or worsened the condition.
- Shoulder and Knee Injuries: Torn rotator cuffs, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears often come from repetitive overhead work, pulling heavy equipment, or a fall on a wet floor. Insurers frequently call these old sports injuries, and that argument has to be answered with imaging and treating-physician testimony.
- Fractures: Broken feet, ankles, and hips from falls on construction sites, ladders, loading docks, and slick kitchen floors can require specialist surgeons and long recoveries, which makes wage benefits and authorized treatment especially important.
- Burns and Catastrophic Injuries: Industrial plants, fabrication yards, and offshore-support operations along the coast produce serious burn and crush injuries that demand lifelong medical attention.
- Truck Driver and On-the-Road Injuries: Drivers hurt in wrecks on I-10, I-110, or Highway 90 while working may have a comp claim and a separate injury claim against the at-fault driver.
- Firefighter and First Responder Claims: Hypertension, heart and lung disease, hepatitis, hearing loss, posttraumatic stress, and cancer tied to the job can all support a claim, though they are often contested.
- Healthcare Worker Injuries: Nurses and aides injured moving patients or by on-the-job exposure face back injuries and occupational illness that carriers routinely dispute.
- Denied and Cut-Off Benefits: Claims denied outright, benefits terminated without warning, and workers pushed back to duty before a doctor releases them all call for a formal challenge before the Commission.
What to Do After a Work Injury on the Mississippi Gulf Coast
The first deadline is the one that catches people. In Mississippi you must report the injury to your employer within 30 days of the accident, and the safest course is to do it the same day, in writing if you can, and keep a copy. Get medical attention right away and tell every provider the injury happened at work, because the first medical record often becomes the most scrutinized document in the file. If your supervisor discourages you from reporting, or tells you to use your own health insurance instead, do not accept that; it is the kind of shortcut that later lets a carrier say there was no timely notice.
Mississippi workers are covered from their first day on the job, with no waiting period, and the weekly wage benefit for total disability is two-thirds of your average weekly wage up to a statutory maximum, for up to 450 weeks in many cases. Medical treatment that is reasonable and necessary is also covered. Photograph the scene and your injury, write down the names of coworkers who saw what happened, and keep a log of missed work, symptoms, and every conversation with the adjuster. Be careful with recorded statements: adjusters ask questions designed to produce answers about prior injuries or off-the-job activity that can be used to dispute the claim, and you are entitled to speak with a lawyer before giving one.
If benefits are denied or stop, the claim is not decided in a regular courtroom. Mississippi comp disputes are heard by the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission, which administers the law and hears cases at an evidentiary hearing before an Administrative Judge. The 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, and filing that petition is what protects the claim when the carrier stops paying. A decision by the Administrative Judge can be reviewed by the Full Commission, which works from the record already made rather than holding a new trial, so the evidence has to be built correctly at the first hearing. A final Commission award can then be appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court within 30 days, and that court often assigns such appeals to the Mississippi Court of Appeals. Because appellate review looks only at the existing record, early mistakes are hard to fix later.
When a Biloxi Work Injury Also Involves Someone Other Than Your Employer
Workers’ compensation is the exclusive remedy against your own employer, but it is not always the only claim. If a negligent driver hits your work vehicle, a subcontractor leaves a hazard on a shared job site, or a defective tool or machine injures you, a separate injury claim against that outside party may be available. Those claims are governed by a different set of rules than comp: fault matters, Mississippi applies pure comparative negligence so a worker’s recovery is reduced by his or her share of fault rather than barred, and the general deadline for negligence claims is three years from when the claim accrued, with shorter periods for claims against government entities, which carry a one-year limit and notice requirements.
The two claims affect each other. The comp carrier may have a right to be repaid from a third-party recovery, and how a settlement is structured can change what you actually keep. Handling both claims together, rather than treating them as unrelated, avoids settling one in a way that damages the other. The firm represents injured people in car and truck accidents, premises liability, and wrongful death matters for exactly this reason.
Biloxi Work Injury Questions Answered
Do I need a lawyer for a workers’ compensation claim in Biloxi?
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 working for it; you should have someone working 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 paid only if benefits or a settlement are recovered. Attorney fees in comp cases are also limited and approved under state law.
How long do I have to report a work injury in Mississippi?
You must report the injury to your employer within 30 days of the accident. Waiting that long is risky, so report it immediately and in writing whenever possible.
What is the deadline to file a claim with the Commission?
Generally two years from the date of injury or the date of the last compensation payment, by filing a Petition to Controvert with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. Exceptions can apply when benefits have been paid, so speak with an attorney as early as you can.
What benefits can I receive?
Reasonable and necessary medical treatment, wage replacement while you cannot work, and additional benefits for permanent disability. Total disability benefits equal two-thirds of your average weekly wage up to a statutory weekly maximum, and most disability payments cannot run longer than 450 weeks.
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, tell your attorney during the consultation so the facts can be reviewed.
The insurance company says my injury is from a pre-existing condition. Is my claim over?
No. If your job caused, worsened, or accelerated the condition, you may still be entitled to benefits. This is one of the most common denial arguments, and strong medical evidence is how it gets answered.
What if the carrier’s doctor says I can go back to work but my own doctor disagrees?
That conflict is common. Do not return to duty simply because the carrier’s physician says so; the dispute can be presented to an Administrative Judge with your treating doctor’s records and opinions. Going back too soon and reinjuring yourself can complicate the claim.
Can I receive workers’ comp and also sue someone?
Yes, when someone other than your employer contributed to the injury, such as a negligent driver or an outside contractor. The comp claim and the injury claim can proceed together, but they must be coordinated because of repayment rights and settlement terms.
Will my health insurance pay while my comp claim is pending?
Health insurers often refuse to pay for injuries they believe are work related, and using health insurance without telling providers it is a work injury can create billing problems later. Tell every provider the injury happened at work, and ask an attorney how to keep treatment moving if the carrier has denied authorization.
I was hurt in Biloxi but my employer is based in another state. Does Mississippi law still apply?
It can. Where the injury happened, where you were hired, and where the employer operates all factor in. Because the firm handles both Mississippi and Louisiana claims, it can sort out which state’s system governs your case.
What if I only miss a few days of work?
Even a short injury can turn into a longer problem if symptoms worsen or surgery is later recommended. Reporting it on time and documenting treatment protects you if the injury turns out to be more serious than it first seemed.
Serving Biloxi and Gulf Coast Workers Across Mississippi
The firm represents injured workers in Biloxi, from the downtown and Point Cadet area through the casino and Back Bay corridors and out toward D’Iberville. We also serve workers in Ocean Springs, Gulfport, Pass Christian, Long Beach, Bay St. Louis, Waveland, Gautier, Pascagoula, Moss Point, and Diamondhead, along with neighboring communities along the coast and inland. Gulf Coast clients work in casinos and hotels, shipbuilding and industrial plants, healthcare, hospitality, and construction, and the firm’s attorneys handle claims from each of those workplaces.
The firm’s reach extends well beyond the coast. We represent injured workers in Hattiesburg, Jackson, Madison, Southaven, the Delta, and north Mississippi, and in Louisiana in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Shreveport, and south Louisiana generally. Whichever part of Mississippi your injury happened in, the claim goes before the same Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission, and the firm’s attorneys are familiar with how it operates.
Talk With a Biloxi Work Injury Attorney Today
If you were hurt on the job, the deadlines have already started running and the insurance carrier is already building its file. A Biloxi work injury attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review what happened, explain what benefits apply, and take over the dealings with your employer and its insurer so you can focus on getting well. Phones are answered 24 hours a day, the consultation is free, and you pay no fee unless the firm recovers benefits for you. Call today to talk through your claim.
