New Orleans Construction Accident Lawyer
A construction accident in Orleans Parish rarely produces just one claim. A scaffold fall on a downtown tower, a crane incident near the riverfront, or a trench collapse on a drainage project can start a workers’ compensation case against the employer’s insurer and, separately, a negligence case against a general contractor, equipment owner, or property owner. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC handles both sides of that picture, representing injured workers and accident victims across New Orleans, South Louisiana, and Mississippi, and the opening question is almost always which claims belong in the case and which deadlines are already running.
If you are looking for a New Orleans construction accident lawyer, the first thing to know is that Louisiana’s comp system generally keeps you from suing your own employer, but it does not stop you from pursuing everyone else who contributed to the injury. Subcontractors, site owners, equipment manufacturers, and negligent drivers can all be separate targets. Which of them applies depends on who controlled the site, who owned the machine, and who made the decision that put you in harm’s way.
Construction injuries are also among the most disputed claims an insurer sees. Adjusters point to degenerative changes in an ironworker’s spine, call a torn shoulder an old sports injury, or argue that the fall happened off the clock. Building the medical and witness record to answer those arguments early is the difference between a claim that holds up and one that gets cut off.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Construction Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation firm that serves injured workers throughout Louisiana and Mississippi, including New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Shreveport, and communities across both states. 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 serves Spanish-speaking clients in their own language (hablamos español).
Rob Lunsford, the firm’s founding partner, has spent his entire legal career representing injured workers. Partners Brad Baskin and Jennifer Priebe 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 successfully tried dozens of jury and bench trials to verdict, which matters when a third-party negligence claim against a contractor has to be ready for a courtroom. Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher round out the attorney team.
Results in construction and heavy-labor cases give a sense of the work: a $600,000 settlement 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. Clients consistently describe a team that listens, communicates, and stays with them against the insurance company at every step.
Common Construction Injuries and How They Happen on New Orleans Job Sites
- Falls from Scaffolds, Ladders, and Roofs: Fractured hips, ankles, and heels, along with spinal injuries, are common in renovation work on older French Quarter, Garden District, and Mid-City buildings, where uneven surfaces and aging structures add risk. These falls often involve both a comp claim and a claim against a contractor that controlled the scaffolding.
- Back, Neck, and Spine Injuries: Lifting, repetitive bending, and heavy impacts lead to lumbar and cervical disc herniations. Insurers frequently blame degenerative disc disease, so the medical evidence has to show how the work caused or worsened the condition.
- Shoulder and Knee Tears: Rotator cuff tears, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears are routine among ironworkers, laborers, and mechanics. Employers often call them old sports injuries, and answering that takes treating-physician support.
- Burns and Industrial Injuries: Plant expansions, refinery turnarounds, and industrial work along the river corridor expose workers to fire, chemical, and electrical hazards that can cause catastrophic injuries.
- Struck-By and Caught-In Accidents: Falling materials, swinging loads, heavy equipment, and trench collapses cause crush injuries and amputations. Equipment owners and operators who are not your employer may be liable.
- Vehicle Crashes on the Job: Work trucks hit on I-10, the Crescent City Connection approaches, or city streets can generate both a comp claim and a negligence claim against the at-fault driver.
- Occupational Illness and Repetitive Trauma: Hearing loss, respiratory disease, and cumulative joint damage from years of physical labor can qualify for benefits even without a single dramatic accident.
What to Do After a Construction Accident in New Orleans
Get medical care first, and tell the provider the injury happened at work so it is documented that way. Then report the injury to your employer. Under Louisiana law, notice of the injury must be given to the employer within 30 days of the accident, and a formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the date of injury. If comp payments have been made, that deadline may extend to three years from the last payment, but do not count on an exception. Reporting in writing, and keeping a copy, avoids arguments later about whether you ever told anyone.
Before leaving the site or as soon afterward as you can, record what you remember: where it happened, who was working nearby, what equipment or materials were involved, and whether safety gear or fall protection was in place. Photograph the scene and your injuries if possible. Get names of coworkers and subcontractor crews who saw the accident. On multi-employer sites, the identity of the other companies present is often what opens up a third-party claim, so note who was supervising and who owned or rented the equipment.
Be careful with recorded statements to the insurance adjuster and with signing medical releases that reach back years. Adjusters are building a record too, and offhand answers about prior back pain or old injuries can be used to argue the condition was not work-related. Follow your doctor’s restrictions, do not return to heavy duty before you are cleared, and keep every medical appointment.
Workers’ compensation claims in Louisiana are heard by workers’ compensation judges in the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration. The district office for New Orleans is District 8, and Louisiana law lets the worker choose where to file: the parish where the injury happened, the parish where you lived when hurt, or the parish of the employer’s principal place of business. Negligence claims against third parties are separate civil lawsuits filed in court, and for accidents on or after July 1, 2024, Louisiana’s tort deadline is two years from the date of injury. Earlier injuries stay under the former one-year period. Wrongful death claims follow a one-year-from-death or two-years-from-injury rule, whichever is longer.
Comp Benefits Versus a Third-Party Lawsuit
Louisiana workers’ compensation covers all reasonable and necessary medical treatment and wage replacement while you cannot work, regardless of who was at fault. Temporary total disability benefits replace a portion of your wages while you are off work. If you return at reduced pay, supplemental earnings benefits pay two-thirds of the difference between your pre-injury wages and what you earn or are able to earn, when you cannot earn at least 90 percent of what you made before. Those benefits can run until you return to full duty, regain your old earnings, or reach the 520-week maximum, and weeks of temporary total disability count toward that limit. Weekly rates are capped, and the cap is set by the date of your accident.
What comp does not pay is pain and suffering or full lost earning capacity. A third-party lawsuit can, if someone other than your employer was negligent. Louisiana now bars recovery for a plaintiff found 51 percent or more at fault for causes of action arising on or after January 1, 2026, and reduces awards proportionally below that threshold, so how fault is assigned on a job site carries real weight. Coordinating the two claims matters too, because the comp insurer typically has a reimbursement interest in any third-party recovery, and settling one claim carelessly can damage the other.
When the Insurer Denies Treatment or the Judge Rules Against You
Louisiana has strict deadlines for challenging medical treatment denials. If the insurer denies a treatment request through utilization review, the aggrieved party has 15 calendar days from written notice to file Form 1009 with the OWC, and the OWC medical director then has 30 calendar days to decide. After that decision, a party has 45 days from issuance to file Form 1008 in the workers’ compensation court. Missing either window can cost you the treatment, including surgery your surgeon has already recommended.
A final judgment from a workers’ compensation judge can be appealed to the appropriate Louisiana 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. For cases arising in Orleans Parish, the Fourth Circuit covers Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard parishes, while the Fifth Circuit covers Jefferson, St. Charles, St. James, and St. John the Baptist. The Louisiana Supreme Court can review a court of appeal decision by writ, with its own 30-day deadline.
New Orleans Construction Accident Questions Answered
Can I sue my employer after a construction accident in Louisiana?
Generally, no. Workers’ compensation is the exclusive remedy against your own employer for most on-the-job injuries. But you can usually still pursue other parties, such as a general contractor, subcontractor, property owner, equipment manufacturer, or negligent driver, whose conduct contributed to the accident.
How long do I have to report a construction injury?
Report it to your employer right away, and no later than 30 days after the accident. Louisiana law bars a compensation proceeding if notice was not given within that period, with limited exceptions. Reporting in writing is the safest approach.
How long do I have to file a workers’ compensation claim in Louisiana?
A formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the date of injury. If the insurer has paid compensation benefits, the deadline can extend to three years from the last payment. Because exceptions are narrow, filing early is far safer than relying on one.
What benefits can a New Orleans construction worker receive?
Medical treatment that is reasonable and necessary, wage replacement while you are temporarily unable to work, supplemental earnings benefits if you return at lower pay, and additional benefits for permanent disability, catastrophic injury, or death. Vocational rehabilitation may also be available.
Do I need a lawyer if my claim is being paid?
Not every claim needs one, but a long-term injury, a surgery recommendation, or a possible outside party at fault are good reasons to talk to one early. Problems often appear months in, when the insurer questions your doctor or stops payments.
What if the insurer says my back injury is a pre-existing condition?
A pre-existing condition does not automatically end a claim. If the job caused, worsened, or accelerated the condition, benefits may still be owed. Strong medical opinions tying your work duties to the injury are the core of answering that argument.
I was an independent contractor on the site. Can I still get benefits?
Classification matters. Some workers labeled as independent contractors are actually employees under the law, and even if you are not, you may have a negligence claim against the parties responsible for the hazard. The facts of how the work was directed and controlled decide it.
What if I was partly at fault for the accident?
Fault generally does not affect workers’ compensation eligibility. In a third-party lawsuit it does matter: for accidents arising on or after January 1, 2026, a claimant found 51 percent or more at fault recovers nothing, and lower percentages reduce the award proportionally.
Can I be fired for filing a construction injury claim?
Louisiana protects workers from retaliation for filing a comp claim. If you were let go or disciplined after reporting an injury, tell your attorney so the circumstances can be reviewed.
Does a construction accident lawsuit affect my comp benefits?
The two claims interact. The comp insurer usually has a right to be reimbursed from a third-party recovery, and settlement terms in one case can affect the other. That is why the claims should be handled together by the same legal team.
What happens if a family member was killed in a construction accident?
Dependents may qualify for death benefits under workers’ compensation, and a wrongful death claim may be available against third parties. The deadline is one year from the date of death or two years from the date of injury, whichever is longer.
Do you handle construction accidents that happen outside New Orleans?
Yes. The firm represents injured workers across Louisiana and Mississippi, from Baton Rouge and Lafayette to Lake Charles, Shreveport, the Gulf Coast, and the Mississippi Delta.
Serving Construction Accident Clients Across Greater New Orleans and Beyond
Our work for injured construction workers starts in New Orleans, from the Central Business District and the Warehouse District to the French Quarter, Marigny, Bywater, Treme, Mid-City, Gentilly, Lakeview, Uptown, and the Garden District. We also represent workers in Algiers, New Orleans East, Chalmette, Metairie, Kenner, Harahan, and Gretna, and across neighboring parishes where building and industrial projects keep crews busy.
Across South Louisiana, the firm serves clients in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, and Lake Charles, as well as Houma, Slidell, Covington, and the river parishes. Further north, we handle claims in Shreveport and throughout north Louisiana. Our reach extends into Mississippi as well, including Jackson, Madison, the Gulf Coast, Hattiesburg, Southaven, and the Delta, so a worker hurt on a project in one state while living in the other still has a team that handles both systems.
Talk to a New Orleans Construction Accident Attorney Today
If you were hurt on a New Orleans job site, the clock on your notice and filing deadlines is already running, and evidence on a construction site changes by the day. Talking with a New Orleans construction accident attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe costs nothing, and you pay no fee unless we recover benefits or a settlement for you. Call us any hour, describe what happened, and we will tell you what claims you may have and what needs to be done first.
