New Orleans Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
Hurt at work in Orleans Parish, and now the adjuster is asking for a recorded statement before you have even seen a specialist? That first week often sets the tone for the entire claim. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC handles workers’ compensation claims for injured workers in New Orleans and across South Louisiana, and the firm has built its practice around exactly this kind of dispute. If you are looking for a New Orleans workers’ compensation lawyer, what you do in the first days and weeks matters more than most people realize.
New Orleans is a city of port work, hotel and restaurant labor, hospital shifts, construction crews, shipyard and industrial jobs, and drivers moving freight and deliveries through some of the most congested corridors in the state. Those jobs produce back and neck injuries, shoulder tears, knee damage, fractures, burns, and repetitive trauma that builds over years. Louisiana law gives injured employees medical care and wage benefits regardless of fault, but insurers do not hand those benefits over automatically. They question whether the accident happened at work, point to an old injury, or push you back on the job before your doctor agrees.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a New Orleans Work Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation firm representing injured workers throughout Louisiana and Mississippi, including New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Shreveport, and the surrounding communities. The firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients. Consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of your case, and you pay no fee unless benefits or a settlement are recovered. Phones are answered 24 hours a day, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with the team in their own language from the first call.
The people behind the work matter. Founding Partner Rob Lunsford 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, and the team also includes Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher.
Results show what that focus can produce: $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 a team that listens, stays responsive, and stands up to the insurance company at every step.
Injuries and Claims We See From New Orleans Workers
- Back, Neck, and Spine Injuries: Lumbar and cervical disc herniations are among the most common comp claims, especially for warehouse, hospital, hospitality, and construction workers. Insurers often blame degenerative disc disease, so the medical record has to connect the work to the injury.
- Shoulder and Knee Injuries: Rotator cuff tears, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears often follow heavy lifting, pulling, or awkward falls. Employers sometimes call these old sports injuries, and the response is clear medical evidence of what changed on the job.
- Fractures: Broken feet, ankles, hips, and other bones from falls, struck-by accidents, and equipment incidents can require specialists and complex surgical repair, along with a long stretch away from work.
- Burns and Catastrophic Injuries: Industrial plants, refineries, and oil field sites around South Louisiana produce serious burns and life-altering injuries that demand long-term medical care and careful valuation.
- Driving and Delivery Injuries: Truck drivers, delivery drivers, and workers on the road for their employer can be hurt in wrecks that trigger both a comp claim and a claim against the at-fault driver.
- Firefighter and First Responder Claims: Hypertension, heart and lung disease, hepatitis, hearing loss, posttraumatic stress, and cancer tied to the job can require proof that stretches across years of service.
- Denied and Cut-Off Benefits: Claims denied outright, medical treatment refused, or checks stopped without warning can usually be challenged through the Office of Workers’ Compensation process.
- Wrongful Death: When a workplace accident takes a life, family members may be entitled to death benefits, and in some cases to a separate wrongful death claim against a third party.
What to Do After a Work Injury in New Orleans
Report the injury to your employer right away, in writing if you can. Louisiana law requires notice to the employer within 30 days of the injury, and a compensation proceeding generally cannot go forward without it. Do not wait to see whether the pain improves. Ask for medical care, tell the provider the injury happened at work, and describe every body part that hurts, not just the worst one. Gaps and omissions in early records are what insurers seize on later.
Keep your own file. Write down the date, time, and place of the accident, who saw it, and who you told. Save photographs, work schedules, pay stubs, and any paperwork the employer or insurer sends. Be careful with recorded statements and with forms you do not fully understand; an adjuster is gathering information to evaluate the claim for the insurer, not for you.
The notice deadline is separate from the filing deadline. A formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the date of injury, though if comp payments have been made, the period can extend to three years from the last payment. Because exceptions turn on the facts, do not assume extra time is available.
You choose where the case is heard 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 particular treatment, the clock is short: Form 1009 must be filed within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice of the denial, and the OWC medical director then has 30 calendar days to decide. A party unhappy with that decision has 45 days from the date it was issued to file Form 1008 under R.S. 23:1203.1. Missing these windows can cost you the treatment itself.
If a workers’ compensation judge rules against you, the judgment can be appealed to the Louisiana Court of Appeal. An appeal that suspends the judgment must be filed within thirty days, and one that does not suspend it within sixty. New Orleans cases fall within the Fourth Circuit, which covers Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard parishes, while cases from neighboring Jefferson Parish go to the Fifth Circuit. A further application to the Louisiana Supreme Court must be filed within 30 days of notice of the appellate judgment.
Wage Benefits and Medical Care Under Louisiana Law
Louisiana workers’ compensation covers all reasonable and necessary medical treatment related to the injury, including surgery and physical therapy. When you cannot work, temporary total disability benefits replace part of your wages. The weekly rate is tied to your average weekly wage and is subject to a statutory maximum and minimum that are set annually and fixed by the date of your accident, so a later increase does not raise an older claim.
If you return to work but earn less because of the injury, supplemental earnings benefits can make up part of the gap. They are calculated at two-thirds of the difference between your pre-injury wages and what you earn or are able to earn, and they apply when you cannot earn at least 90 percent of your old pay. These benefits continue until you are released to full duty, you are earning your pre-injury wages, or you reach the 520-week limit, and weeks of temporary total benefits count toward that limit. Permanent disability, catastrophic injury, and death benefits are available in more serious cases.
When Someone Other Than Your Employer Caused the Injury
Workers’ compensation is the exclusive remedy against your employer, but it does not protect everyone else. A negligent driver who hits your work vehicle or a contractor with an unsafe site may be separately liable. For injuries on or after July 1, 2024, Louisiana’s general tort deadline is two years from the day the injury was sustained, and a wrongful death claim runs one year from death or two years from the injury, whichever is longer. Fault matters as well: for claims arising on or after January 1, 2026, a person found 51 percent or more at fault recovers nothing, and lesser fault reduces the award proportionally. The firm handles car and truck accidents, premises liability, and wrongful death claims, and coordinates them with your comp case so the two do not undercut each other.
Questions New Orleans Workers Ask About Comp Claims
Do I need a lawyer for a workers’ compensation claim in New Orleans?
Not every claim requires one, but if 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 change the outcome. The insurer has adjusters and attorneys protecting its interests, and you should have someone protecting yours.
How much does it cost to hire the firm?
Nothing up front. Consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of your case, and fees are collected only if benefits or a settlement are recovered. Attorney fees in workers’ compensation cases are limited and approved under state law.
How long do I have to report my injury?
Louisiana requires notice to your employer within 30 days of the injury. Reporting immediately, in writing, is the safest approach.
How long do I have to file a claim?
A formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the date of injury. If comp payments were made, the deadline can extend to three years from the last payment, but do not count on that without checking your facts.
Can my employer fire me for filing a claim?
Louisiana protects workers from retaliation for filing a comp claim. If you were let go or punished after reporting an injury, tell your attorney during the consultation so your options can be reviewed.
What if the insurer says my injury is from a pre-existing condition?
A pre-existing condition does not automatically end a claim. If your job caused, worsened, or accelerated the condition, you may still qualify for benefits. Strong medical evidence comparing your condition before and after the work incident is usually the answer.
What can I do if the insurer refuses a surgery or treatment my doctor recommends?
Louisiana has a dedicated process for medical disputes. You must file Form 1009 within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice of the denial, and the OWC medical director has 30 calendar days to issue a decision. Because the deadline is short, contact an attorney immediately.
Will I be forced to go back to work before I am ready?
Insurers sometimes push a return to work after a doctor’s note that does not reflect your real limits. You should follow your treating physician’s restrictions, and if the employer offers work outside them, do not accept or refuse without getting advice. Benefits can continue at a reduced level if you can only earn less than before.
Can I still bring a personal injury claim if I was hurt in a wreck while working?
Yes, if someone other than your employer caused the crash. You can collect comp benefits and also pursue the at-fault driver, though the two claims interact and must be handled together. For injuries on or after July 1, 2024, the tort deadline is two years from the injury.
What happens if I was partly at fault for my own accident?
Workers’ compensation is a no-fault system, so your own carelessness generally does not defeat a comp claim. Fault matters in a separate third-party claim, where Louisiana now bars recovery for a person found 51 percent or more at fault in claims arising on or after January 1, 2026.
What happens if I lose at the OWC level?
A judgment can be appealed to the Louisiana Court of Appeal, with a 30-day deadline for an appeal that suspends the judgment and 60 days for one that does not. New Orleans cases go to the Fourth Circuit, and further review can be sought from the Louisiana Supreme Court.
Do you represent Spanish-speaking workers?
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 New Orleans Workers’ Compensation Clients Across South Louisiana
The firm represents injured workers across Orleans Parish, from the French Quarter, the Central Business District, and the Warehouse District through Mid-City, Gentilly, New Orleans East, Algiers, Uptown, the Garden District, and the Bywater. Clients also come from Metairie, Kenner, Harahan, Gretna, Marrero, Harvey, and Chalmette in the surrounding parishes, and from communities along the river and the lakefront.
Beyond the metro area, the team serves workers in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Houma, Shreveport, and across South Louisiana and north Louisiana. The firm also represents injured workers in Mississippi, from Jackson and Madison to the Gulf Coast, Hattiesburg, Southaven, and the Delta, so workers who cross the state line for jobs can have one team handle a claim that touches both states.
Talk With a New Orleans Workers’ Compensation Attorney Today
If you have been hurt on the job, you do not have to take on the insurance company by yourself. A New Orleans workers’ compensation attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review what happened, explain which deadlines apply to you, and start working on the medical care and wage benefits Louisiana law provides. Call to schedule a free consultation. Phones are answered around the clock, and you pay no fee unless the firm recovers benefits for you.
