Harrison County Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured workers in Harrison County and across Mississippi and South Louisiana, handling denied, delayed, and terminated workers’ compensation claims for people hurt on the job along the Gulf Coast. If you work in the shipyards, casinos, hospitals, ports, or construction sites around Gulfport and Biloxi and an injury has left you unable to do your job, you are likely dealing with a Harrison County workers’ compensation lawyer question that has a clock attached to it.
Mississippi gives you thirty days to tell your employer about a work injury, and generally two years from the date of injury to file a Petition to Controvert with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission if benefits have not been paid. Coastal workers lose claims to those deadlines more often than they lose them on the merits, usually because they assumed a supervisor’s verbal acknowledgment was enough or because the insurer was paying for a while and then quietly stopped.
Workers’ compensation here is a claims system run by a Commission, not a courtroom contest in the county seat. Your case is heard by an Administrative Judge, reviewed by the Full Commission on the existing record, and only then reaches the appellate courts. How well the medical evidence and testimony are built at the first hearing largely determines how the entire case ends.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Harrison County Work Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation law firm serving injured workers throughout Mississippi and Louisiana, including Harrison County, the Gulf Coast, Hattiesburg, Jackson, Madison, Southaven, and the Delta. Most lawyers who accept comp cases are personal injury attorneys who take a work injury when one happens to walk in. This firm is built the other way around: workers’ compensation is the center of the practice, and the attorneys bring over 75 years of combined experience to claims that have been denied, delayed, or cut off. Consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of the case, and there is no fee unless benefits or a settlement are recovered. Phones are answered 24 hours a day, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with the team in their own language from the first call.
Rob Lunsford, 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 represents injured workers before the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher round out the attorney team.
The results reflect the kind of injuries Gulf Coast workers actually 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 his work vehicle was struck, and $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns. The firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements overall. Clients consistently describe a team that listens, communicates, and stays with them through fights with the insurance company.
Work Injuries We See From Harrison County Employers
- Back, Neck, and Spine Injuries: Lumbar and cervical disc herniations are common among dock workers, hospital staff who lift patients, and construction crews. Insurers often blame degenerative disc disease, and the answer is medical evidence showing how years of physical work or a single incident caused or aggravated the condition.
- Shoulder and Knee Injuries: Torn rotator cuffs, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears follow repetitive overhead work, falls, and awkward lifting. Employers sometimes call these old sports injuries, which makes the timeline of symptoms and treatment records critical.
- Fractures: Broken feet, ankles, and hips from falls off scaffolding, ladders, and vessels can require specialists and complex surgical repair, with long stretches away from work that put wage benefits in play.
- Burns and Catastrophic Injuries: Industrial plants, fabrication yards, and oil and gas operations produce severe burns and crush injuries that demand lifelong medical care and a serious look at permanent disability.
- Trucking and Driving Injuries: Port and distribution traffic along the Interstate 10 and Interstate 110 corridors puts delivery and truck drivers at risk, and a wreck caused by another driver can support both a comp claim and a separate injury claim.
- First Responder and Firefighter Claims: Hypertension, heart and lung disease, hepatitis, hearing loss, posttraumatic stress, and cancer tied to the job require careful proof of the connection between the work and the condition.
- Occupational Illness and Repetitive Trauma: Conditions that develop over time are covered when the job caused or worsened them, though proving when the claim began to run requires attention.
What to Do After a Work Injury on the Mississippi Gulf Coast
Report the injury to your employer right away, in writing if you can, and never later than thirty days after the accident. Say what happened, when, and which body parts hurt, even if you think the pain will pass. Keep a copy of what you send. Ask for medical care and be specific that the injury happened at work; mentioning it casually to a supervisor and then telling an emergency room nurse something vague is how causation disputes begin.
Mississippi covers you from your first day on the job, with no waiting period, and wage replacement runs at up to two-thirds of your average weekly wage, subject to a statutory weekly maximum. Disability benefits are generally capped at 450 weeks. The two-year filing window is protected by a claim filed with the Commission, not by the insurer’s payments alone, so if your checks stop or your doctor’s recommendations are being ignored, waiting is the most expensive mistake available to you.
If the insurer denies the claim, the next step is a Petition to Controvert, Form B-5, filed with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. If that decision goes against you, the Full Commission reviews the record made before the judge. It is not a new trial, so witnesses, medical opinions, and work history must be in the record the first time. A final Commission award can be appealed within thirty days to the Mississippi Supreme Court, which often assigns the case to the Mississippi Court of Appeals.
Avoid giving a recorded statement to the adjuster before you understand what it will be used for, avoid returning to work before your treating doctor releases you, and avoid signing medical authorizations that sweep in your entire history. Keep every pay stub, work schedule, discharge paper, and appointment record. If your injury happened in a vehicle crash or on someone else’s job site, note who else was involved, because a third party may be liable in addition to your employer.
Getting Paid While You Heal: Wage Benefits and the Pre-Existing Condition Fight
Mississippi wage benefits are tied to your average weekly wage, so accuracy in that number matters. Overtime, second jobs, and bonuses can be disputed. Temporary total disability applies while you cannot work at all, permanent partial disability covers lasting impairment that reduces your earning capacity, and permanent total disability applies when you cannot return to gainful work. The gap between what an adjuster offers and what the law provides can be significant, particularly for workers who cannot go back to physical labor and need vocational evidence to show it.
The most common insurer argument is that the injury was already there. A pre-existing condition does not end a claim if work caused, worsened, or accelerated it. Surgical techs, mechanics, shipyard workers, and laborers often have years of wear that the insurer will label degeneration. The response is a treating physician who will explain, in terms the Commission can credit, how the job changed the picture.
If you were hurt on the Gulf Coast but live or work part of the time in Louisiana, or your employer is based across the state line, which state’s law governs can become a real question. The firm handles claims in both states, so the forum can be chosen on the merits rather than convenience.
Harrison County Workers’ Compensation Questions Answered
Do I need a lawyer for a workers’ compensation claim?
Not every claim requires one, but if your benefits have been denied, delayed, reduced, or cut off, or if your injury will keep you out of work for a long time, an attorney can make a major difference. The insurer has adjusters and lawyers protecting its interests.
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 collected only if benefits or a settlement are recovered. Attorney fees in comp cases are limited and approved under state law.
How long do I have to report a work injury in Mississippi?
You must give your employer notice within thirty days of the accident. Notice should be written and specific, and you should keep a copy.
How long do I have to file a claim with the Commission?
Generally two years from the date of injury, or from the date of the last compensation payment, to file a Petition to Controvert. If no disability benefits were ever paid, the right to benefits is barred if no claim is filed within those two years.
What does workers’ compensation pay in Mississippi?
Medical care that is reasonable and necessary for the injury, plus wage replacement of up to two-thirds of your average weekly wage subject to a weekly maximum that the state sets. Disability benefits generally cannot run past 450 weeks.
Am I covered if I was hurt during my first week?
Yes. Mississippi coverage applies from the first day of employment, with no waiting period and no minimum earnings requirement.
Can I be fired 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, raise it in your consultation so the circumstances can be reviewed.
Can I choose my own doctor after a Gulf Coast work injury?
Choice of physician is a point that often gets contested early, and what you say to the first provider can shape the entire claim. Talk to an attorney before committing to a treatment path the insurer has steered you toward, especially if you need surgery or a specialist.
What if the insurer says I can return to work but my doctor disagrees?
Do not accept a release you do not have from your treating physician. Insurers sometimes rely on their own examiners to end wage benefits. A dispute like this belongs before an Administrative Judge, with your doctor’s records and testimony supporting continued disability.
Can I sue someone besides my employer for a work injury?
Possibly. If a negligent driver, contractor, or equipment maker contributed to your injury, you may have a personal injury claim in addition to comp benefits. Mississippi uses pure comparative negligence for those claims, so your share of fault reduces your recovery rather than barring it. The firm coordinates both claims so they do not undercut each other.
What if my injury developed gradually instead of in one accident?
Repetitive trauma and occupational illness can be compensable. The practical difficulty is fixing the date the clock started and linking the condition to the work, which is why early medical documentation matters.
Does the firm handle Louisiana claims if my employer is based there?
Yes. The firm represents injured workers throughout both Mississippi and Louisiana, including before the Louisiana Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration, so a cross-border employment situation can be handled by one team.
Serving Injured Workers Across Harrison County and the Gulf Coast
From Gulfport and Biloxi through D’Iberville, Long Beach, Pass Christian, and Diamondhead, the firm represents injured workers throughout Harrison County, including those employed at the ports, casinos, shipyards, hospitals, and construction sites that keep the coastal economy running. The team also serves workers in Saucier, Lyman, Woolmarket, and the communities along the Interstate 10 and Highway 49 corridors.
Beyond Harrison County, the firm serves neighboring Hancock, Jackson, Stone, and Pearl River counties on the Gulf Coast, and injured workers in Hattiesburg, Jackson, Madison, Southaven, and the Delta. The firm also represents workers across South Louisiana, including New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, and Lake Charles, as well as north Louisiana and Shreveport.
Speak With a Harrison County Workers’ Compensation Attorney Today
If you have been hurt on the job, you do not have to take on the insurance company by yourself. A Harrison County workers’ compensation attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review what happened, explain which deadlines apply to you, and take over the dealings with your employer and its insurer so you can concentrate on getting well.
Phones are answered 24 hours a day, consultations are free, and you pay no fee unless the firm recovers benefits for you. Call today to talk through your claim.
