Mass tort cases such as Zantac resolve through either a global (or matrix) settlement or an inventory settlement. Like it sounds, a global settlement is a dollar amount that covers the payout for all outstanding claims. (In the Zantac litigation, there may very well be tens of thousands of claims.) There is also a matrix of criteria to decide which plaintiff gets how much. For instance, stage 1 cancer patients who get cured may receive less than stage 4 cancer patients who are terminal. And people who had one surgery may receive less than people who had multiple surgeries. Ultimately, it is up to each plaintiff to accept or reject the settlement. With inventory settlements, plaintiffs' law firms evaluate their cases individually. (Most plaintiffs' firms have multiple Zantac clients.) Each plaintiff agrees to an acceptable settlement amount. Then the plaintiffs' firm adds together each client's acceptable minimum. This is called the aggregate minimum. Ultimately, the defense attorneys may offer each plaintiffs' firm a settlement to cover all its clients. If a plaintiffs' firm scores a larger settlement than the aggregate minimum, each client will get a percentage of the extra money.