Morgan City Personal Injury Lawyer
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents hurt people in Morgan City and across South Louisiana, handling workers’ compensation claims and the personal injury cases that grow out of them, including car and truck accidents, premises liability, and wrongful death. For anyone searching for a Morgan City personal injury lawyer, the first thing worth knowing is that in this part of St. Mary Parish, many serious injuries happen at work, and a work injury often produces two separate claims instead of one.
Morgan City sits where the Atchafalaya River meets the bayous and the Gulf supply chain, and its economy shows it: shipyards, fabrication shops, marine and offshore support, oilfield service, and the trucking that feeds them. A deckhand struck by a swinging load, a welder hurt by a negligent contractor’s equipment, a driver rear-ended on Highway 90 while on a delivery run. Each of these people may have a workers’ compensation claim against their employer and a separate injury claim against whoever else caused the harm. The two claims run under different rules, different deadlines, and different decision-makers, and handling one badly can damage the other.
That distinction matters because workers’ compensation does not pay for pain and suffering and does not depend on fault. A third-party injury claim does, but it requires proving someone else was negligent. People who treat these as the same thing tend to miss deadlines or give statements that hurt them later.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Morgan City Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a law firm that represents injured workers and accident victims across Louisiana and Mississippi, including Morgan City, Houma, Lafayette, Baton Rouge, and the rest of South Louisiana. The firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements for its clients, and it is paid only if it recovers benefits or a settlement. Consultations are free, the firm advances case costs, and phones are answered 24 hours a day. Hablamos espanol.
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 for Workers’ Compensation Law, Claimants, in Jackson. Andrew Rueff has tried dozens of jury and bench trials to verdict, which matters when a third-party claim will not settle on fair terms. Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher round out the attorney team.
The firm’s results include cases that look like the injuries common around Morgan City: $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns to the lower extremities, $195,000 for a derrickhand with complex shoulder injuries from pulling large pipe, $385,000 for a project manager injured when he was struck in his work vehicle, and $190,000 for a truck driver hurt in a wreck on the job. Larger back injury outcomes include $685,000 for a surgical tech and $600,000 for a construction worker. Clients consistently describe the same things in reviews: attorneys who listen, who stay in contact, and who fight the insurance company at every step.
Injury Situations That Come Out of Morgan City’s Working Waterfront
- Offshore and marine support injuries: Crew boat, supply vessel, and dockside work can involve rules beyond state compensation law depending on the worker’s status and the vessel. Sorting out which system governs your injury early prevents a claim from being filed in the wrong place.
- Oilfield and rig injuries: Burns, crush injuries, and shoulder and back damage from handling pipe are common on land-based rigs and service jobs. The firm has recovered settlements for both burn and pipe-handling injuries.
- Shipyard and fabrication shop accidents: Falls, struck-by incidents, and equipment failures in yards and plants often involve a contractor or equipment maker in addition to the employer, which opens a separate claim.
- Truck and delivery wrecks: A worker hit by another driver while hauling or delivering can recover comp benefits and also pursue the at-fault driver and that driver’s insurer.
- Car accidents on Highway 90 and local roads: Commuter and industrial traffic around Morgan City produces rear-end collisions, intersection crashes, and wrecks involving heavy vehicles.
- Premises liability: Unsafe conditions on property you do not work for, such as a customer site, a contractor’s job site, or a business open to the public, can support a claim against the property owner.
- Back, neck, shoulder, and knee injuries: Disc herniations, rotator cuff and SLAP tears, and meniscus and ACL tears are the injuries the firm sees most, and insurers frequently blame them on age or old sports injuries.
- Wrongful death: When a workplace or road accident takes a life, the family may have claims against more than one party, with deadlines that differ by claim type.
What to Do After an Injury in St. Mary Parish
Report the injury to your employer right away, and in any event within 30 days. Louisiana will not allow a compensation proceeding to go forward without timely notice, so do this in writing if you can and keep a copy. Get medical care the same day when possible, and tell every provider the injury happened at work and exactly how. Vague descriptions in early records become the insurer’s best material later.
If someone other than your employer contributed, such as a driver, a contractor, or a property owner, write down who they are, photograph the scene and equipment, and collect witness names before memories fade. Do not give a recorded statement to any insurance company before you have talked to a lawyer, and do not sign medical releases broader than they need to be.
The clock on the two types of claims differs. For a workers’ compensation claim in Louisiana, a formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the injury, though that period can stretch to three years from the last compensation payment if benefits were paid. For a negligence claim against a third party, Louisiana now allows two years from the day the injury or damage is sustained, for injuries on or after July 1, 2024. Earlier injuries remain under the old one-year period. Wrongful death claims run one year from the death or two years from the injury, whichever is longer, though a wrongful death claim based on medical malpractice stays at one year from the date of death.
Workers’ compensation disputes are heard by a workers’ compensation judge at the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration, not in a regular court. Hearings can be held in the parish where you were hurt, where you lived when injured, or where your employer’s principal place of business is, which is your election to make. Appeals from that system for this part of the state go to the Louisiana First Circuit Court of Appeal, which covers St. Mary Parish. Ordinary injury lawsuits are filed in district court, and some, such as those involving diverse parties, can end up in the federal Western District of Louisiana, which includes St. Mary Parish.
If your treatment is denied, a fast clock starts. A dispute over a denied medical treatment must be filed within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice of the denial, and the medical director then has 30 days to rule. After that decision, you have 45 days to seek further review. Missing these windows can cost you care your doctor says you need.
How a Work Injury and an Injury Claim Fit Together
The central problem when both claims exist is coordination. Your employer’s compensation carrier generally has a right to be repaid from what you recover from a negligent outsider, so the two settlements affect each other. Settling the third-party claim carelessly can waive benefits you would otherwise keep, and taking a comp settlement can limit what you do next. A single firm handling both lets the strategy be built once: what to claim, in what order, and how much is left in your pocket after reimbursement.
Fault also shapes the injury claim in a way it does not shape comp. For causes of action arising on or after January 1, 2026, Louisiana bars recovery if a claimant is found 51 percent or more at fault, and a lower share of fault reduces the award proportionally. Juries are told this rule. That makes early evidence on how the accident happened more important than it used to be. Earlier causes of action remain under pure comparative fault.
Compensation benefits themselves follow the law: all reasonable and necessary medical treatment, wage replacement while you cannot work, supplemental earnings benefits if you return at lower pay, and additional benefits for permanent disability. Supplemental earnings benefits can run 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 total. Weekly rates are set by the date of the accident and are capped by a figure adjusted each year.
Questions Morgan City Residents Ask About Injury Claims
Do I need a personal injury lawyer or a workers’ compensation lawyer?
If you were hurt on the job, you may need both skill sets. Compensation covers your medical care and wages regardless of fault, while a personal injury claim goes after a negligent third party for losses comp does not pay. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe handles both so the claims are built together.
Can I sue my employer if I was hurt at work?
Generally, workers’ compensation is the exclusive remedy against your employer for a covered workplace injury, which is why identifying a third party, such as a driver, contractor, or equipment maker, often matters so much.
How long do I have to file after a Morgan City car accident?
For injuries on or after July 1, 2024, Louisiana gives two years from the day the injury or damage is sustained. Injuries from before that date remain under the earlier one-year period, so the date of the accident controls.
How much does it cost to hire the firm?
Nothing up front. Consultations are free, the firm advances case costs, and it is paid only if it recovers benefits or a settlement. In workers’ compensation matters, attorney fees are limited and approved under state law.
What if I was partly at fault for the accident?
It depends on when the cause of action arose. For those on or after January 1, 2026, a claimant found 51 percent or more at fault recovers nothing, and a lower percentage reduces the award. Earlier claims fall under pure comparative fault. Either way, you should not assume partial fault ends your claim.
Will the insurance company say my injury was already there?
Often, yes. A pre-existing condition does not automatically end a claim if the job caused, worsened, or accelerated it. Strong medical evidence tying your work duties or the accident to the change is the answer.
Can I be fired for filing a workers’ compensation claim?
Louisiana protects workers from retaliation for filing a claim. If you were let go or punished after reporting an injury, tell the firm so your options can be reviewed.
What happens if my doctor’s treatment request is denied?
Louisiana has a fast review process. You must file the dispute form within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice, and the medical director has 30 days to decide. That is one of the shortest deadlines in the system, so call right away.
I was injured on a vessel or offshore. Is that the same as an onshore injury?
Not necessarily. Depending on your job and the vessel, different laws can apply, and the right forum and remedies change. This is a reason to get your injury reviewed before accepting any carrier’s explanation of what you are owed.
Does a workers’ comp settlement affect my injury lawsuit?
It can. The compensation carrier usually has a reimbursement interest in a third-party recovery, and certain settlement terms can waive rights. The claims should be sequenced deliberately instead of resolved one at a time without regard to the other.
Do you handle wrongful death cases from workplace accidents?
Yes. The firm handles wrongful death claims, and families may have both compensation death benefits and a claim against a negligent outside party. Deadlines vary, with one year from the death or two years from the injury, whichever is longer, generally applying.
Do you speak Spanish?
Yes. Hablamos espanol, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with the team in their own language from the first call to the end of the case.
Serving Injured Clients Across Morgan City and South Louisiana
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe represents injured workers and accident victims in Morgan City and throughout St. Mary Parish, including Berwick, Patterson, Franklin, Baldwin, Charenton, and Centerville. The firm also serves the neighboring bayou communities around Houma and Thibodaux, along with Amelia, Gibson, and the stretch of Highway 90 and the Atchafalaya Basin that ties these towns together.
Beyond the immediate area, the firm takes cases in Lafayette, New Iberia, Abbeville, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, and Lake Charles, as well as Shreveport and communities across north Louisiana. The firm also represents injured people throughout Mississippi, from Jackson and Madison to Hattiesburg, Southaven, the Gulf Coast, and the Delta. Whether you work a yard, a rig, a plant, or a truck route, the firm can take your case.
Talk to a Morgan City Injury Attorney Today
If you were hurt on the job or in an accident near Morgan City, a Morgan City injury attorney from Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can tell you whether you have a compensation claim, an injury claim, or both, and what the deadlines are for each. Call any time, day or night. The consultation is free, and you pay no fee unless the firm recovers benefits or a settlement for you.
