The first court hearing is due to start in London on Wednesday in a multimillion-dollar compensation case involving New Zealand veterans.
The case is being brought by veterans of British nuclear weapons tests, including those on Malden and Christmas Island in Kiribati in the 1950s.
It includes hundreds of New Zealand, Fijian and British veterans who are suing Britain's Defence Ministry for millions in compensation.
The veterans believe they were used as guinea pigs to study the effects of radiation and allege that the nuclear tests they witnessed led to cancers, skin defects, fertility problems and reduced life expectancy.
The British government has previously said that service personnel did not get ill as a result of radiation exposure.
But the case might not get that far. Lawyers say the government will argue that the claim is being lodged too late after the alleged injuries.
