The judge in the case, Nicholas G. Garaufis of Federal District Court in Brooklyn, who had spurred the settlement talks during two days of frenzied legal diplomacy in the courthouse, read the terse settlement statement in a mostly empty courtroom at 4:30 yesterday afternoon.

The agreement barred anyone involved in the case from making public comments about a dispute that had drawn vast public interest. The lawyers brushed by reporters in the courthouse at the end of the day without answering questions.

But it was clear from the sketchy terms that the negotiations had been difficult because they involved volatile personal stakes, with Mr. Harrison's family trying to shield his memory from what they saw as exploitation and the doctor fighting not only to preserve his reputation but also to protect his son from an ugly battle. The doctor's son and two daughters, who the estate said had also received Mr. Harrison's autographs, were also named in the suit.

In the agreement, the estate acknowledged that the medical care provided by the doctor and the hospital ''was not an issue in this case.'' It also specified that the agreement settled all claims, indicating that the estate had surrendered its demands for damages for the asserted breach of confidentiality. No payments were called for.

In exchange, the estate received an assurance that the guitar and any other autographs Mr. Harrison had given the Lederman family would be taken out of circulation. Though the settlement did not specify how the items would be disposed of, it has been clear that the lawyers for the Harrison family wanted the guitar destroyed. After the suit was filed last week, Dr. Lederman offered to donate the guitar to charity, but the offer was rejected by a lawyer for the estate, Paul V. LiCalsi, who said the Harrison family did not want the guitar sold, traded or displayed by anyone.