Jackson Product Liability Lawyer
A defective product injury and a workers’ compensation claim are not competing remedies, and the second one can quietly shrink the first if it is handled carelessly. When a malfunctioning saw, a failed harness, or a faulty truck component hurts someone at work, the comp system pays benefits regardless of fault, but it generally does not hold the manufacturer accountable. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured people across Mississippi and Louisiana, and a Jackson product liability lawyer at the firm looks at both tracks together, so that the comp claim and the claim against the company that made or sold the product are built to support each other.
Product cases differ from ordinary accident claims because the evidence is often physical and perishable. The machine, the tool, the tire, the guard that was supposed to be in place: these items prove the case, and they can be repaired, discarded, returned to a vendor, or altered by an employer’s maintenance crew within days. Jackson sits at the center of a region full of the settings where this happens, including construction projects, industrial plants, distribution and trucking operations, hospitals, and oil field work, and each of these puts workers in daily contact with equipment they did not design and cannot inspect.
How a Defective Product Claim Fits Alongside Workers’ Compensation
The employer and its insurer are generally shielded from tort suits by the exclusivity of the comp system. The manufacturer of a defective press brake, the distributor of a recalled lift, or the company that built a faulty fall-protection system has no such shield. That separation is what makes a third-party product claim possible for someone hurt on the job, and it is often the only route to compensation for pain, suffering, and losses that comp benefits do not cover.
The two claims run on different clocks and different rules. Mississippi comp requires notice to the employer within 30 days of the accident and, absent benefits already being paid, a claim filed with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission within two years. A product claim in Mississippi is a civil action, and for claims without a more specific limitation period the general period is three years from when the cause of action accrued, with a discovery rule for latent injuries or disease. Those periods are not interchangeable, and an attorney should confirm which one governs the specific theory being pursued before relying on any of them.
Mississippi follows pure comparative negligence, so if a jury finds an injured person partly at fault, the recovery is reduced by that percentage rather than eliminated. Louisiana moved to a different standard for causes of action arising on or after the start of 2026, under which a claimant found 51 percent or more at fault recovers nothing, and lesser fault reduces the award proportionally. If your injury happened in Louisiana, that threshold shapes how aggressively the manufacturer will try to blame the worker.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Product Liability Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a Mississippi and Louisiana firm whose practice is centered on injured workers, serving clients in Jackson, Madison, the Gulf Coast, Hattiesburg, Southaven, the Delta, New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, and Shreveport. Consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of a case, clients owe nothing unless there is a recovery, phones are answered 24 hours a day, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with the team in their own language.
That background matters in product cases because the injured worker’s medical picture, work history, and wage loss are the foundation of both claims. The firm’s results include 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 with back injuries after being struck in his work vehicle, and $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns. Burns and catastrophic injuries on rigs and in plants are the type of harm where defective equipment is frequently part of the story.
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 has argued personal injury and insurance matters before state appellate courts, which is the courtroom experience a product case can require. Clients describe a firm that listens, stays in contact, and fights the insurance company at every step.
Kinds of Product Defect Claims We See in Work and Road Injuries
- Industrial Machinery and Power Tools: Missing or defeatable guards, failed interlocks, and inadequate warnings on presses, saws, conveyors, and nail guns can crush, amputate, or fracture. Fractures of the hands, feet, ankles, and hips often require specialist surgery and long recovery.
- Fall Protection and Lifting Equipment: Harnesses, lanyards, scaffolding, ladders, forklifts, and aerial lifts used on Jackson-area construction sites can fail from design or manufacturing flaws, producing the back, neck, and spine injuries that make up a large share of serious comp claims.
- Oil Field and Plant Equipment: Valves, pressure fittings, pipe-handling tools, and protective gear that fail on rigs and in industrial facilities can cause severe burns and shoulder injuries, including the kind sustained by derrickhands pulling heavy pipe.
- Commercial Vehicle Components: Tires, brakes, seats, and steering parts on work trucks and delivery vehicles can contribute to wrecks on the job. A driver hurt this way may have a comp claim and a claim against the parts maker, in addition to any claim against another motorist.
- Protective Equipment and Chemicals: Respirators, gloves, flame-resistant clothing, and hazardous substances with inadequate warnings can leave firefighters, first responders, and plant workers with lung disease, burns, or conditions that surface long after exposure.
- Medical Devices and Hospital Equipment: Nurses and surgical techs can be injured by defective patient lifts, needles, and operating-room equipment, and the same defects may harm patients.
- Wrongful Death from a Defective Product: When a product failure kills a worker or a family member, wrongful death claims follow their own deadlines and damages rules, which differ between Mississippi and Louisiana.
What to Do After a Product Injury, and Where the Claims Go
Report the injury to your employer right away. In both Mississippi and Louisiana the notice window for comp is 30 days, and missing it can jeopardize benefits you are otherwise entitled to. Get medical care and describe how the injury happened accurately, including that a tool or machine failed, because the first medical records become evidence for both claims.
Then focus on the product. Photograph it, note the make, model, and serial number, and keep any packaging, manuals, warning labels, and purchase or maintenance records. Do not let anyone repair, return, or throw it away, and ask in writing that your employer preserve it. Names of coworkers who saw the failure and any prior complaints about the same equipment are valuable. Avoid giving a recorded statement to an insurer before you understand how it could be used, and avoid posting about the incident online.
The comp claim in Mississippi is heard by the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission, first before an Administrative Judge and then, on review, before the Full Commission, which examines the existing record rather than holding a new trial. A final Commission award can be appealed within 30 days, and the Supreme Court may assign the appeal to the Court of Appeals. A product liability lawsuit is a separate civil case. Depending on the parties and the amount at stake, it may be filed in Hinds County Circuit Court, which includes the First Judicial District in Jackson, or in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, whose Northern Division sits in Jackson. Appeals from federal court go to the Fifth Circuit. If the injury happened in Louisiana, comp disputes go to the Office of Workers’ Compensation, with appeals to the appropriate court of appeal, while the product case follows Louisiana’s own prescription rules, which now run two years from the day of injury for injuries on or after July 1, 2024.
One practical risk deserves mention: settling the comp claim and the product claim without coordinating them. Comp carriers may hold reimbursement rights against a recovery from a third party, and the wording of a release can affect both. Having the same legal team review both files before anything is signed avoids expensive surprises.
Proving a Product Was Defective
A product case generally rests on showing that the item was defective in its design, flawed in its manufacture, or sold without adequate warnings or instructions, and that the defect, not misuse alone, caused the harm. The theories overlap, and the right mix depends on the facts. A design claim asks whether a safer, workable alternative existed. A manufacturing claim compares your unit to the maker’s own specifications. A warning claim looks at what the label and manual said and whether a reasonable user would have understood the danger.
Proof usually requires more than the injured person’s account. Engineers may need to examine the product, recalls and prior complaints may need to be gathered, and the manufacturer’s testing and design records may have to be obtained through discovery. Defendants commonly respond by blaming the worker, the employer’s maintenance, or alteration of the product after sale. Preserving the item early, and having someone qualified inspect it before anyone else touches it, is often what separates a strong case from a speculative one.
Product Liability Questions Injured Workers Ask
Can I file a product liability claim if I am already receiving workers’ compensation?
Yes. Comp benefits come from your employer’s insurer, while a product claim targets the manufacturer, distributor, or seller of the defective item. They are separate claims, though a comp insurer may be entitled to reimbursement from a third-party recovery, so the two should be managed together.
Can I sue my employer for providing a defective machine?
Generally no. Workers’ compensation is the exclusive remedy against an employer in most circumstances. The claim is usually against outside companies, such as the manufacturer or supplier, rather than the employer.
How long do I have to file a product liability lawsuit in Mississippi?
Claims without a more specific limitation period fall under a general three-year period from accrual, and for latent injury or disease the clock does not start until the injury is discovered or should reasonably have been discovered. Because the correct period depends on the exact claim, have an attorney confirm it promptly instead of assuming.
What is the deadline if the injury happened in Louisiana?
For injuries on or after July 1, 2024, delictual actions in Louisiana generally prescribe two years from the day the injury was sustained. Earlier injuries remain under the former one-year period. Wrongful death uses the longer of one year from death or two years from injury.
What if I was partly at fault for my injury?
In Mississippi your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault. In Louisiana, for causes of action arising on or after the start of 2026, fault of 51 percent or more bars recovery, and lower percentages reduce it.
Do I need to keep the defective product?
Yes, if at all possible. The item itself is often the most important evidence. Do not let it be repaired, returned, or discarded, and ask your employer in writing to preserve it. If it is in someone else’s hands, tell your attorney right away so a preservation demand can be sent.
Is there a cap on damages in a Mississippi product case?
Mississippi limits noneconomic damages in certain case types, including most wrongful death claims at $1,000,000 and medical malpractice at $500,000, and those caps do not apply to economic damages. Whether a cap reaches a particular product claim depends on the claim, so it is a question for an attorney reviewing your facts.
Will my employer retaliate if I pursue a claim against a manufacturer?
Mississippi and Louisiana both protect workers from being fired for filing a comp claim. If you were disciplined or let go after reporting your injury, tell us during your consultation so the situation can be reviewed.
How much does it cost to hire the firm?
Consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of the case, and you owe fees only if there is a recovery. Attorney fees in workers’ compensation cases are limited and approved under state law.
Can a product claim also involve a car or truck accident?
It can. If a tire blowout, brake failure, or faulty seat or airbag contributed to a crash, the parts manufacturer may share responsibility alongside any negligent driver. The firm handles car and truck accident cases in both states, and an on-the-job wreck may involve comp, a driver claim, and a product claim at once.
What if the product injured a family member who died?
Wrongful death claims have their own deadlines. In Mississippi, negligence-based wrongful death generally carries a three-year period and intentional torts one year, and claims against a county or governmental agency require notice and carry a one-year limit. In Louisiana the one-year-from-death or two-years-from-injury rule applies. Speak with an attorney quickly so evidence is preserved.
Serving Product Injury Clients Throughout Jackson and Central Mississippi
Our product liability work begins in Jackson, in Hinds County, and extends across the metro and beyond. We represent injured people in the neighborhoods and communities of the capital city, in Byram, Terry, Clinton, Raymond, Bolton, Utica, and Edwards, and in neighboring Madison County, including Madison and Ridgeland, as well as Rankin County communities such as Brandon, Pearl, and Flowood. Clients also come to us from Vicksburg, Yazoo City, Canton, and Brookhaven.
Beyond the Jackson area, we serve workers and families in Hattiesburg, on the Gulf Coast, in Southaven and north Mississippi, and throughout the Delta. In Louisiana, our reach includes New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Shreveport, and communities across south and north Louisiana. Whether the product failed at a plant, a job site, a rig, or on the highway, we handle the injury claim and the comp claim together wherever the injury occurred.
Talk With a Jackson Product Liability Attorney Today
If a defective tool, machine, vehicle part, or piece of safety equipment hurt you, preserving the evidence and understanding your deadlines should happen before anything else. A Jackson product liability attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review how your workers’ compensation claim and a claim against the manufacturer fit together, explain what the evidence will need to show, and tell you honestly what the case may involve.
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 what happened and what to do next.
