Marathon Garyville Refinery Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
The Garyville refinery sits in St. John the Baptist Parish, and that one fact shapes how a workers’ compensation claim from the plant is handled. A hearing in a case like this is held, at the worker’s election, in the parish where the injury happened, the parish where the worker lived when hurt, or the parish of the employer’s principal place of business. Appeals from the workers’ compensation judge go to the Louisiana Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal, which covers St. John the Baptist along with Jefferson, St. Charles, and St. James. At Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC, we handle workers’ compensation claims for injured workers across South Louisiana and Mississippi, and a Marathon Garyville Refinery workers’ compensation lawyer has to know both the plant environment and the Louisiana system that governs these claims.
Refinery injuries rarely look like office injuries. A turnaround crew member may be hurt during a shutdown with hundreds of contractors on site. A pipefitter may develop a shoulder or lower back condition from years of overhead work and heavy lifting. An operator may be exposed to chemicals or heat. These cases also raise a question that a typical comp case does not: who actually employed the worker? At a facility this large, many injured people are employed by contractors and staffing companies, and the insurer paying benefits may not be the refinery’s own carrier. Sorting that out early shapes everything that follows, from which adjuster you deal with to whether a separate injury claim exists against someone other than your employer.
Louisiana law gives injured workers real protections, but the insurance side knows the playbook well. They argue the injury was not work-related, blame a pre-existing condition, send you back to work before your doctor releases you, or stop paying without warning. The sections below explain how these claims move, what the deadlines are, and what separates a claim that gets paid from one that stalls.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Refinery Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured workers throughout Louisiana and Mississippi, including the River Parishes communities around Garyville, LaPlace, Reserve, and Gramercy, and South Louisiana from Baton Rouge to New Orleans. We have recovered more than $100 million in settlements for our clients. Most attorneys who take comp cases are personal injury lawyers who handle a work injury only when one walks in the door. We built the firm the other way around.
Several of those results involve the kind of work refinery and industrial employees do. We secured $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns to the lower extremities and $195,000 for a derrickhand with complex left shoulder injuries from pulling large pipes. We also recovered $600,000 for a construction worker with a complex back injury, $685,000 for a surgical tech with a lower back injury, and $385,000 for a project manager injured after being struck in his work vehicle. Smaller results matter too, including $135,000 for a diesel mechanic with a SLAP tear and $150,000 for a truck driver with a meniscus tear.
The people handling your claim matter. Rob Lunsford, our Founding Partner, has spent his entire legal career representing injured workers. Brad Baskin and Jennifer Priebe are Partners who 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, alongside Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher. Clients describe attorneys who listen, stay responsive, and fight the insurance company at every step. Consultations are free, we advance the costs of your case, and you pay no fee unless we recover for you. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, and Hablamos español.
Injuries and Claims We See From Refinery and Industrial Work
- Back, neck, and spine injuries: Lifting, climbing, awkward positioning in tight equipment spaces, and years of physical labor produce lumbar and cervical disc herniations. Insurers often point to degenerative disc disease; the answer is medical evidence showing the job caused or worsened the condition.
- Shoulder and knee injuries: Torn rotator cuffs, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears come from pulling pipe, working overhead, and climbing stairs and scaffolds. Employers sometimes call these old sports injuries, and the claim turns on how the work caused or aggravated the damage.
- Burns and catastrophic injuries: Heat, steam, fire, and chemical contact are real risks in plant environments. These cases can involve specialists, skin grafts, long recovery, and permanent disability, which raises the stakes on every benefit decision.
- Fractures: Falls from platforms, ladders, and scaffolding, or crush injuries from equipment, can break feet, ankles, hips, and other bones and may require complex surgical repair and extended time off work.
- Occupational exposure and illness: Conditions that develop over time from workplace exposure, including respiratory and hearing problems, can be compensable when work caused them. They are often disputed because there is no single accident date.
- Contractor and staffing-company workers: Many people at a large refinery are employed by outside companies, which affects which insurer pays benefits and whether another party can be held responsible.
- Third-party injury claims: When an outside contractor, equipment supplier, or negligent driver contributes to the injury, you may have a personal injury claim in addition to comp benefits, and the two claims must be coordinated.
- Death benefits: When a worker dies from a workplace injury, families may be entitled to death benefits and may have additional claims against responsible third parties.
What to Do After a Refinery Injury
Report the injury to your employer right away, and in writing if you can. Louisiana requires notice within 30 days of the injury, and a compensation proceeding generally cannot be maintained without it. A formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the accident, though that period can extend to three years from the last compensation payment if benefits have been paid. Do not treat 30 days as a comfortable window. Delays give the insurer an argument that the injury happened somewhere else, and at a plant with shift work and contractors, the paper trail from day one matters.
Get medical care and be specific with the provider about how the injury happened at work. Describe the task, the equipment, and the date. Vague histories (“my back hurts”) are what adjusters use later to say the problem pre-dated the job. Keep copies of everything: incident reports, work orders, texts with supervisors, witness names, and the name of the company that actually employs you and its insurer. Take photos of the area or equipment if you can do so safely. Avoid recorded statements to an adjuster before you have spoken with a lawyer, and do not sign medical releases broader than what the claim needs.
If treatment is denied, the clock gets short. In Louisiana, a utilization review dispute requires filing Form 1009 with the Office of Workers’ Compensation within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice of the denial, and the OWC medical director then has 30 calendar days to decide. If you disagree with that decision, you have 45 days from the date it was issued to file Form 1008 under R.S. 23:1203.1. The 45 days run from issuance, not from the day you open the envelope. Missing either window can cost you the medical care you need.
Your case is heard by a workers’ compensation judge in the OWC district you or your lawyer elects. A final judgment can be appealed to the court of appeal; an appeal that suspends the judgment must be filed within 30 days, and one that does not suspend it within 60 days, running from the day after the judgment was signed or notice was mailed, whichever is later. Because St. John the Baptist Parish falls in the Fifth Circuit, that is the appellate court for cases arising here. A party can then ask the Louisiana Supreme Court to review by applying for a writ within 30 days of notice of the judgment.
Wage Benefits, Supplemental Earnings, and Why Refinery Pay Complicates Them
Louisiana workers’ compensation pays medical treatment that is reasonable and necessary, plus wage replacement while you cannot work. Weekly benefits are tied to a percentage of your average weekly wage, subject to a maximum that is fixed by the date of your accident and does not change later. Because refinery and turnaround work often involves heavy overtime, per diem, and shift differentials, calculating your average weekly wage correctly can move your benefit rate substantially. Employers and carriers have an incentive to use a lower number. We look at the actual pay history rather than accepting the carrier’s figure.
If you can return to work but cannot earn at least 90 percent of what you made before, you may be entitled to supplemental earnings benefits, which pay 66 2/3 percent of the difference between your pre-injury wages and what you earn or are able to earn. These benefits can continue until you are released to full duty, you are earning your pre-injury wages, or you reach the 520-week maximum, with temporary total disability weeks counting toward that limit. For a skilled tradesperson who can no longer climb, lift, or work overhead, the fight is often over what the worker is “able to earn,” because insurers hire vocational consultants to point to lower-paying jobs. Permanent disability benefits, catastrophic injury benefits, and death benefits are also available when the facts support them.
Questions About Marathon Garyville Refinery Workers’ Compensation Claims
Do I need a lawyer for a refinery workers’ compensation claim?
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 make a major difference. The carrier has adjusters and attorneys protecting its interests. You should have someone protecting yours.
How much does it cost to hire your firm?
Nothing up front. Consultations are free, we advance the costs of your case, and we are paid only if we recover benefits or a settlement for you. Attorney fees in workers’ compensation cases are limited and approved under state law.
How long do I have to report my injury and file a claim in Louisiana?
Report the injury to your employer within 30 days of the accident. A formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the date of injury, though if compensation payments have been made, the deadline may extend to three years from the last payment. Because exceptions depend on the facts, speak with an attorney as soon as you can.
Can I be fired for filing a workers’ compensation claim?
Louisiana protects workers from retaliation for filing a comp claim. If you were let go or punished after reporting an injury, tell us during your consultation so we can review your options.
What if my injury was caused by a pre-existing condition?
A pre-existing condition does not automatically end your claim. If your job caused, worsened, or sped up the condition, you may still be entitled to benefits. Insurers raise this argument constantly, and answering it with strong medical evidence is a core part of what we do.
I work for a contractor at the refinery, not for the refinery itself. Can I still get benefits?
Yes. Benefits are owed by your employer’s compensation insurer, even if the work was performed at someone else’s plant. The practical issue is identifying who your legal employer is and which carrier is responsible, which is why you should gather your pay records and any contractor paperwork early.
Can I sue the refinery or another company in addition to getting comp benefits?
Sometimes. Comp benefits are generally your remedy against your own employer, but if a different company, a negligent driver, or an equipment supplier contributed to your injury, you may have a separate injury claim against them. Louisiana’s delictual claims now carry a two-year prescriptive period for injuries on or after July 1, 2024, and for causes of action arising on or after January 1, 2026, a claimant found 51 percent or more at fault recovers nothing, so these claims need prompt attention.
The insurance company denied my surgery. What can I do?
You can dispute the denial through the utilization review process. You must file Form 1009 with the Office of Workers’ Compensation within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice of the denial. The medical director then has 30 calendar days to issue a decision, and further review requires Form 1008 within 45 days of that decision being issued.
Will I get paid while my claim is being disputed?
Not automatically. If the carrier denies the claim, wage benefits may stop until the dispute is resolved. That gap is exactly when injured workers fall behind on rent and bills, and it is a major reason to get an attorney involved quickly so the denial can be challenged before a workers’ compensation judge.
My injury developed over years of heavy work. Is that covered?
It can be. Conditions that develop gradually from repetitive physical work or exposure can be compensable if the job caused or aggravated them. Because there is no single accident date, these claims depend heavily on medical opinion, work history, and the timeline of when you first connected the condition to your work.
What happens if my claim is denied and I lose at the hearing?
The workers’ compensation judge’s decision is final unless appealed. Appeals go to the court of appeal for the area, and the filing deadlines are short, 30 days if the appeal suspends the judgment and 60 days if it does not. We take appeals when an unfair ruling needs to be challenged.
Do you represent Spanish-speaking workers?
Yes. Hablamos español, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with our team in their own language from the first call to the end of the case.
Serving Refinery Workers Across Garyville and the River Parishes
Our work for refinery and industrial employees starts in St. John the Baptist Parish, where the Garyville plant is located, and extends through the nearby River Parishes communities of LaPlace, Reserve, Edgard, and Wallace. We also represent workers who live in neighboring St. James and St. Charles parishes, including Gramercy, Lutcher, Vacherie, Luling, Norco, and Destrehan, many of whom commute to plant jobs along the Mississippi River corridor.
From there, we represent injured workers throughout South Louisiana, including the New Orleans area, Metairie, Kenner, Slidell, Baton Rouge, Gonzales, Houma, Thibodaux, Lafayette, and Lake Charles, and across north Louisiana through Shreveport. Our reach extends into Mississippi as well, from Jackson and Madison to the Gulf Coast, Hattiesburg, Southaven, and the Delta, so workers who live in one state and are hurt in another still have a team that understands both systems.
Talk to a Marathon Garyville Refinery Workers’ Compensation Attorney
If you were hurt at the Garyville refinery or another industrial site along the river, you do not have to fight the insurance company alone. A Marathon Garyville refinery workers’ compensation attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review what happened, identify who is responsible for your benefits, and push for the medical care and wage replacement the law entitles you to. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, consultations are free, and you pay no fee unless we recover benefits for you. Call us today to talk through your claim.
