General Dynamics Keeps Navy Sub Asbestos Suit in Federal Court

General Dynamics Electric Boat can require a former Navy electronics technician on a Vietnam War-era submarine to pursue claims that he developed lung cancer from asbestos used in the sub’s construction in federal court, the First Circuit ruled.

The General Dynamics Corp. subsidiary was acting under the Navy’s authority when it built the USS Francis Scott Key during the mid-60s, the court said. And all of the claims Michael Moore and his wife assert against it relate to actions the company undertook for the Navy at its Groton, Conn., shipyard, the court said.

“The Navy oversaw every aspect of the ...