Orleans Parish Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
The goal in an Orleans Parish work injury case is simple to state and hard to reach: authorized medical treatment that keeps moving, weekly checks that arrive on time, and a resolution that reflects what the injury has taken from your ability to earn. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation law firm that represents injured workers in Orleans Parish and across Louisiana and Mississippi, helping them reach that outcome when an insurer has denied, delayed, or cut off what the law provides. If you need an Orleans Parish workers’ compensation lawyer, the people you are dealing with should handle comp claims as the center of their practice, not as an occasional side matter.
Orleans Parish produces a particular mix of claims. Port and dock work, hospital and nursing shifts, hotel and restaurant labor, construction on the city’s constant renovation projects, delivery and rideshare driving, and industrial work along the river all generate injuries here. Back and spine problems are the most frequent, followed by shoulder and knee tears, fractures from falls, and burns. The insurer’s response is often predictable: the injury was not work-related, it was already there, or you are ready to go back sooner than your doctor says. Knowing which of those arguments is coming, and what evidence answers it, shapes the whole case from the first week.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for an Orleans Parish Comp Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured workers throughout Louisiana and Mississippi, serving Orleans Parish and the surrounding communities as well as clients from Baton Rouge to Lafayette, Lake Charles, and Shreveport, and from Jackson and the Gulf Coast to the Delta. Workers’ compensation is the center of the firm’s practice, and its attorneys bring over 75 years of combined experience to claims that have been denied, delayed, or cut off. The firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients. Clients pay nothing up front, consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of the case, and fees are collected only if benefits or a settlement are recovered. Phones are answered around the clock, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with the team in their own language from the first call.
The people behind that record matter. 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 in 2026 for Workers’ Compensation Law, Claimants, in Jackson. Andrew Rueff has tried dozens of jury and bench trials to verdict, and Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher round out the attorney team.
Results in serious back and orthopedic cases show what that experience produces: $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 his work vehicle was struck, and $221,000 for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns. Clients describe the same things in their reviews: attorneys who listened, stayed responsive, and fought the insurance company at every step. For an Orleans Parish workers’ compensation attorney, that combination of trial experience and single-minded focus is what separates a claim that gets pushed through from one that gets quietly shelved.
Injuries and Claim Types We Handle for Orleans Parish Workers
- Back, Neck, and Spine Injuries: Lumbar and cervical disc herniations are the claims insurers fight hardest, usually by pointing to degenerative disc disease. Warehouse, dock, hospital, and construction work in New Orleans wears on the spine, and the medical record must connect either a single incident or years of physical labor to the injury.
- Shoulder and Knee Injuries: Torn rotator cuffs, SLAP tears, ACL tears, and meniscus tears are common among hospitality workers, drivers, mechanics, and laborers. Employers often label them old sports injuries, so the first medical history you give matters enormously.
- Fractures: Falls from scaffolding, ladders, and loading platforms break feet, ankles, hips, and other bones, often requiring specialists and complex surgical repair followed by a long recovery away from work.
- Burns and Catastrophic Injuries: Industrial sites, plants, and rigs in and around the New Orleans area produce severe burns and life-altering injuries that raise questions about permanent disability and lifetime medical care.
- Firefighter and First Responder Claims: Hypertension, heart and lung disease, hepatitis, hearing loss, posttraumatic stress, and cancer tied to the job are covered claim types, and they typically demand careful medical proof of the work connection.
- Work Vehicle Accidents: Delivery drivers, truckers, and employees running errands can be hurt on roads like the Interstate 10 corridor or city streets. These cases may carry both a comp claim and a third-party injury claim against the at-fault driver.
- Wrongful Death and Third-Party Claims: When a fatal work accident occurs, or when a negligent contractor rather than your employer caused your injury, separate claims may exist alongside workers’ compensation benefits.
What to Do After a Work Injury in New Orleans
Start with medical care and notice, in that order of urgency but both within days. Get treated, and tell your supervisor about the injury in a way that leaves a record: a written message or email, not just a hallway conversation. Louisiana expects you to notify your employer within 30 days of the accident, and a formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the injury. If compensation payments have already been made, that deadline can stretch to three years from the last payment, but relying on that extension is a gamble. Missing the 30-day notice window gives the insurer an argument it should never have, so treat it as a hard deadline.
Be careful with what you say to the adjuster. Recorded statements are often used to lock you into an incomplete account, and offhand comments about prior aches can be recast as proof of a pre-existing condition. Describe the mechanism of injury accurately, tell every doctor exactly how it happened, and do not minimize symptoms. Keep records of everything: photos of the scene or equipment, names of coworkers who saw it, pay stubs showing your earnings, and every appointment, prescription, and mileage trip for treatment.
Where the claim goes if it is disputed matters. Louisiana workers’ compensation disputes are heard by workers’ compensation judges in the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration, which operates a district court in New Orleans, and under the hearing rules the worker elects whether the case is heard in the parish where the injury occurred, the parish of residence at the time, or the parish of the employer’s principal place of business. When the insurer denies a specific treatment, the clock is short: a utilization review dispute must be filed on Form 1009 within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice of the denial, and the OWC medical director then has 30 days to decide. If that decision goes against you, you have 45 days from the date it was issued to file Form 1008, and that period runs from issuance, not from the day you read it. These are the deadlines that quietly end otherwise strong claims, so call a lawyer before they run, not after.
If a workers’ compensation judge issues a final judgment you disagree with, it can be appealed. Because Orleans Parish sits within the Fourth Circuit, which covers Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard parishes, appeals from New Orleans cases go to the Louisiana Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal. The statute allows an appeal within 30 days where the appeal suspends the judgment and within 60 days where it does not, running from the later of the signing of the judgment or the mailing of notice of judgment. Treat the shorter period as your deadline.
How Louisiana Wage Benefits Work When You Cannot Return to Your Old Job
Medical care is only half of a comp claim. The other half is replacing the income you lose, and Louisiana structures that in tiers. While your doctor has you off work entirely, you receive temporary total disability, which pays two-thirds of your average weekly wage up to a weekly maximum set each year from the statewide average weekly wage. The maximum is fixed by the date of your accident and does not change later, so the accident date quietly shapes your whole benefit.
When you come back to lighter work at lower pay, or cannot find work you are able to do, supplemental earnings benefits apply. They are generally two-thirds of the gap between what you earned before the injury and what you earn, or are able to earn, once you can no longer earn 90 percent or more of your pre-injury wages. They continue until you are released to full duty, you are back to pre-injury earnings, or you reach the 520-week maximum, and weeks of temporary total disability count toward that 520. Permanent disability benefits and catastrophic injury or death benefits address the most serious outcomes.
The decision that matters most here is how you respond when the insurer says you can work. A light-duty offer your doctor has not approved, or a job search the insurer says you should have done, can reduce or end benefits if handled badly. Before you accept, refuse, or ignore a return-to-work offer, get your treating physician’s written restrictions and talk to counsel. A settlement is another decision point: lump-sum offers can close out future medical care permanently, and the number should be weighed against realistic future treatment, not just present bills.
Orleans Parish Workers’ Comp Questions Answered
Do I need a lawyer for a workers’ compensation claim in Orleans Parish?
Not every claim requires one, but if your benefits have been denied, delayed, reduced, or cut off, or if your 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, 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 also limited and approved under state law.
How long do I have to report my injury and file a claim?
Report the injury to your employer within 30 days of the accident. A formal claim in Louisiana generally must be filed within one year of the injury, with a possible extension to three years from the last compensation payment if benefits have already been paid. Do not count on the extension.
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, raise it during your consultation so the circumstances can be reviewed.
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 accelerated 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 the firm’s work.
What happens if the insurer denies a treatment my doctor recommends?
You can dispute it through the utilization review process by filing Form 1009 with the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration within 15 calendar days of receiving written notice of the denial. The OWC medical director then has 30 calendar days to decide. A further challenge requires Form 1008 within 45 days of the decision’s issuance.
How are my weekly benefits calculated?
Temporary total disability is generally two-thirds of your average weekly wage, subject to a weekly maximum that is fixed by the date of your accident. Your pay records, including overtime and second jobs where applicable, drive that number, so accurate wage documentation matters.
Can I choose my own doctor?
Louisiana law gives employees a choice of treating physician in many circumstances, but the rules and exceptions are technical, and switching providers can trigger disputes. Ask before you change doctors, because a poorly handled switch can give the insurer a reason to refuse payment.
Will I also have a personal injury claim if someone other than my employer caused the accident?
Possibly. A negligent driver who hits your work truck or a contractor whose unsafe site causes a fall can be a separate defendant. For injuries on or after July 1, 2024, Louisiana’s general injury deadline is two years from the day the injury occurred, and recovery is barred if you are found 51 percent or more at fault for claims arising on or after January 1, 2026. Coordinating that claim with your comp benefits protects both.
What if I am hurt in Orleans Parish but live or work elsewhere?
The firm represents injured workers statewide in Louisiana and Mississippi. Under Louisiana hearing rules, the worker elects the parish for hearings from the injury location, residence at the time of injury, or the employer’s principal place of business, so where your case is heard is often a strategic choice, not an accident of geography.
Does the firm handle Spanish-speaking clients?
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.
What if my claim was already denied by another lawyer’s office or by the insurer?
A denial is not the end. Denied and delayed claims are the center of this firm’s work, and many can be revived with better medical evidence, witness accounts, and work history, so long as the filing deadlines have not passed.
Serving Injured Workers Across Orleans Parish and South Louisiana
The firm represents injured workers throughout Orleans Parish, from the French Quarter, the Central Business District, and the Warehouse District to Mid-City, Gentilly, New Orleans East, and the Lower Ninth Ward, and from Uptown, the Garden District, and Algiers to Lakeview, Bywater, Treme, and the Irish Channel. Workers hurt along the riverfront, in hospitals and hotels, and on construction sites across the parish are the kind of clients we help every day.
Our reach extends to neighboring communities and well beyond them. We also serve workers in Jefferson Parish communities such as Metairie, Kenner, Harvey, and Gretna, as well as Chalmette in St. Bernard Parish, Slidell and Covington on the north shore, and Houma and Thibodaux in the bayou parishes. Across South Louisiana we represent clients in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, and Lake Charles, and we handle claims in Shreveport and north Louisiana as well. The firm’s Mississippi practice serves Jackson, Madison, Hattiesburg, Southaven, the Gulf Coast, and the Delta.
Talk to an Orleans Parish Workers’ Comp Attorney Today
If you are looking for an Orleans Parish workers’ comp attorney, call Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC and tell us what happened. The phones are answered 24 hours a day, the consultation is free, and you owe no fee unless we recover benefits for you. The deadlines in a Louisiana comp claim are short and unforgiving, so the best time to get a lawyer involved is before the insurer has made its next move. We help injured workers, and that is all we do.
