The defense's concerns about taking a motor vehicle case with a sympathetic plaintiff, who was injured and a candidate for surgery, helped clinch a nearly $100,000 settlement, according to plaintiffs co-counsel Kevin Ferry.

Ferry, owner of the Law Offices of Kevin C. Ferry in New Britain, said he believed the defense, which represented State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co., thought a jury trial in the case of plaintiff Vinith Keola could have turned into more than the payouts of the two insurance companies, which totaled $95,937.