New Orleans Work Injury Lawyer
The goal after a job injury is simple to state and hard to reach: your medical treatment approved, a weekly check that arrives on time, and a settlement or award that reflects what the injury has actually cost you. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation firm that helps injured workers across Louisiana and Mississippi pursue exactly that, and a New Orleans work injury lawyer from our team handles the fight with the employer and insurer so you can focus on recovering.
Work injuries in this part of Louisiana look different from those in most places. Port and dock labor, offshore and oilfield support work, hotel and restaurant jobs in the French Quarter and Central Business District, hospital shifts, construction on a city that is constantly being repaired, and long-haul and delivery driving all produce claims. The injuries tend to be physical and cumulative: herniated discs, torn shoulders, shattered ankles, burns. The insurer’s reaction is often the same: question what happened, point to an old injury, or send you back before a doctor has cleared you.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a New Orleans Workers’ Compensation Claim
Most lawyers who take comp cases are personal injury lawyers who see a work injury only when one walks in. Workers’ compensation is the center of this firm’s practice, and our attorneys bring over 75 years of combined experience to claims that have been denied, delayed, or cut off. We serve injured workers across New Orleans, Jefferson Parish, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Shreveport, and the rest of South and North Louisiana, as well as throughout Mississippi. Consultations are free, we advance the costs of the case, and we are paid only if we recover benefits or a settlement for you. Attorney fees in comp cases are limited and approved under state law, and our phones are answered 24 hours a day. Hablamos español, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with us in their own language from the first call to the end of the case.
Rob Lunsford, 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 tried dozens of jury and bench trials to verdict. Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher round out an attorney team that works comp cases every day.
The results reflect that focus. The firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients, including $685,000 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 he was struck in his work vehicle, and $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns. Clients consistently describe an attorney who listened, took the time to understand their situation, and fought the insurance company at every step.
Common Injuries and Claims Our New Orleans Injury Attorneys Handle
- Back, neck, and spine injuries: Lumbar and cervical disc herniations are among the most common comp claims, and insurers routinely blame degenerative disc disease. We build the medical record to show how repetitive heavy work or a single incident caused or worsened the condition.
- Shoulder and knee injuries: Rotator cuff tears, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears often follow pulling, lifting, or a fall on a job site. Employers sometimes call them old sports injuries, so the timeline and the treating surgeon’s opinion matter.
- Fractures: Broken feet, ankles, and hips from falls, forklift and vehicle incidents, or crushing accidents can require specialists and complex surgical repair, with long stretches away from work.
- Burns and catastrophic injuries: Plants, refineries, oil rigs, and industrial sites produce severe burns and life-changing trauma that raise questions of permanent disability and lifetime medical care.
- Driving and vehicle injuries: Delivery drivers, truck drivers, and employees running work errands are hurt on I-10, I-610, and city streets. These can support both a comp claim and a claim against the at-fault driver.
- Firefighter and first responder conditions: Hypertension, heart and lung disease, hepatitis, hearing loss, posttraumatic stress, and cancer tied to the job require careful proof of the connection to the work.
- Third-party and wrongful death claims: When a negligent contractor, property owner, or driver contributed to the injury, or when a worker dies from a job-related incident, claims outside comp may also be available.
What to Do After a Job Injury in New Orleans
Report the injury to your employer right away, and in any event within 30 days of the accident. Louisiana law bars a compensation proceeding when the employer was never given notice within that window, so a verbal mention to a coworker is not enough. Put the report in writing if you can, keep a copy, and describe the injury accurately without guessing about causes you do not know. Then get medical care and tell every provider that the injury happened at work, so the records connect the condition to your job from the first visit.
The formal claim has its own clock. In Louisiana, a 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 were paid. Claims are heard by workers’ compensation judges in the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration. New Orleans has its own district court within that system, and you elect where to file from among the parish where you were hurt, the parish where you lived at the time, or the parish of your employer’s principal place of business.
If the insurer denies a treatment your doctor recommends, a separate and much shorter deadline applies. A utilization review denial must be disputed on the state form within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice, and the medical director then has 30 calendar days to rule. If you disagree with that decision, you have 45 days from the date it was issued to file the next form, and that period runs from issuance, not from when the letter reaches you. Missing these windows can cost you an approved surgery, which is why denial letters should reach an attorney the day they arrive.
Avoid the mistakes that sink claims: skipping doctor’s appointments, giving a recorded statement to the adjuster without preparation, returning to full duty before you are cleared, posting about your activities on social media, and signing forms you have not read. If your employer pressures you to call the injury something else or to use your own health insurance, say so to your attorney. Louisiana protects workers from retaliation for filing a comp claim, and a firing after an injury report should be reviewed promptly.
How Louisiana Wage Benefits Work and Where Disputes Arise
Louisiana comp pays all reasonable and necessary medical treatment plus wage replacement while you cannot work. Weekly compensation is capped at a maximum set each year from the statewide average weekly wage, and the cap that applies to you is fixed by the date of your accident rather than adjusted later. When you can return but earn less, supplemental earnings benefits come into play. They equal two-thirds of the difference between your pre-injury wages and what you earn or are able to earn, and they are available when you cannot earn at least 90 percent of your old wages. These benefits can continue until you are released to full duty, return to pre-injury earnings, or reach the 520-week maximum, with temporary total disability weeks counting toward that total.
Most disputes are about proof, not paperwork. Insurers hire vocational consultants to claim you can earn more than you do, send you to physicians who minimize the injury, and use surveillance to argue you are more capable than you say. An attorney’s work includes obtaining the treating doctor’s opinions in usable form, challenging the vocational findings, preparing you to testify before the workers’ compensation judge, and deciding whether a lump-sum settlement is worth more than continued benefits. If the judge rules against you, a final judgment can be appealed to the Louisiana court of appeal, with a notice period that generally runs 30 days when the appeal suspends the judgment; for New Orleans cases, that is the Fourth Circuit, which covers Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard parishes.
When someone other than your employer caused the injury, a separate lawsuit may run alongside the comp claim. Louisiana now gives two years for most injury lawsuits on injuries after mid-2024, and a claimant found 51 percent or more at fault recovers nothing for causes of action arising in 2026 or later. Coordinating the two claims so a settlement in one does not damage the other is a task our personal injury attorneys handle with the comp team.
Frequently Asked Questions About New Orleans Work Injury Claims
Do I need a lawyer for a workers’ compensation claim?
Not every claim requires one, but if benefits have been denied, delayed, reduced, or cut off, or the 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 your firm?
Nothing up front. Consultations are free, we advance the case costs, and we are paid only if we recover benefits or a settlement. Attorney fees in comp cases are limited and approved under state law.
How long do I have to report my injury?
Report it to your employer right away and no later than 30 days after the accident. Louisiana will not maintain a compensation proceeding without that notice.
How long do I have to file a claim in Louisiana?
A claim generally must be filed within one year of the accident. If compensation payments were made, the deadline can extend to three years from the last payment. Because exceptions are fact-specific, speak with an attorney early.
Can I be fired for filing a comp claim?
Louisiana and Mississippi both protect workers from retaliation for filing. If you were let go or punished after reporting an injury, tell us so we can review your options.
My injury involved a pre-existing condition. Is my claim dead?
No. If your job caused, worsened, or accelerated the condition, benefits may still be owed. Insurers raise this argument often, and strong medical evidence is how it gets answered.
What can I do if the insurer refuses to approve surgery?
Dispute the denial through the state’s utilization review process within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice. The medical director has 30 days to decide, and a further form must be filed within 45 days of that decision if you disagree. Do not wait on these deadlines.
Can I choose my own doctor?
You generally have a say in who treats you, but the insurer will push its own physicians. Which provider you see, and what the records say about causation, can shape the whole claim, so raise this with an attorney before the first appointment if you can.
Will my health insurance pay while my comp claim is pending?
Some workers use health insurance to keep treatment going during a dispute, but that can create reimbursement problems and invite arguments about the injury. Talk to us before routing work-related care through your own plan.
What if a driver or contractor caused my injury?
You may have a personal injury claim in addition to comp benefits, such as when a negligent driver hits your work vehicle or an unsafe site causes a fall. The two claims interact, so they should be handled together.
Is a lawyer worth it for a smaller injury?
Often yes, because injuries that seem minor can turn into surgery or permanent restrictions, and early mistakes in reporting or medical records are hard to repair. A free consultation costs nothing and tells you where you stand.
What happens if I was partly at fault for my accident?
Fault generally does not defeat a comp claim, which is a no-fault system. Fault matters in a separate third-party lawsuit, where Louisiana’s comparative fault rules can reduce or, at 51 percent or more for newer claims, bar recovery.
Serving New Orleans Work Injury Clients Across South Louisiana and Beyond
Our work for injured workers starts in New Orleans and reaches across Orleans Parish, from the French Quarter, the Central Business District, and the Warehouse District through Mid-City, Gentilly, Lakeview, the Garden District, Uptown, and the Bywater. We represent workers on the riverfront and around the port, in New Orleans East, Algiers, and across the river in Jefferson Parish communities such as Metairie, Kenner, Harahan, Gretna, and Marrero. Plaquemines and St. Bernard parishes, which share New Orleans’ appellate circuit, are part of the same practice, as are the north shore communities of St. Tammany Parish.
Beyond the metro area, we serve clients in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Houma, and Shreveport, and throughout South and North Louisiana. Because the firm also practices in Mississippi, we represent workers from Jackson, Madison, Hattiesburg, Southaven, the Gulf Coast, and the Delta, including those who live in one state and work in the other.
Talk to a New Orleans Work Injury Attorney Today
If you have been hurt on the job, you do not have to take on the insurance company yourself. A New Orleans work injury attorney from Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review your situation, explain the deadlines that apply to you, and start working on the medical care and wage benefits the law entitles you to. Call us any time, day or night, for a free consultation. You pay no fee unless we recover benefits for you.
