By Tim Hepher LONDON (Reuters) -A UK judge on Friday rejected an attempt by Airbus to invoke a De Gaulle-era law restricting the way it responds to foreign courts, as a high-profile dispute with Qatar Airways became mired in a growing debate over cross-border legal powers. Qatar Airways is suing France-based Airbus for $1.4 billion over damage to the painted surface and anti-lightning system on A350 jets, saying safety could be at risk from a design defect. Airbus acknowledges quality flaws but insists the jets are safe. Now, the two sides must provide each other with thousands of pages of doc…