The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday put a temporary hold on the Chrysler plan to exit bankruptcy protection under an alliance with Italian automaker Fiat.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg signed an order postponing the closing of the plan backed by the U.S. and Canadian governments to allow Chrysler to emerge from bankruptcy as a new entity.
The order calls for a stay "pending further order by the undersigned or by the court."
The move will allow the justices to consider whether to allow a full hearing of the legal issues -- a delay which Chrysler and US officials say could cause the plan to collapse.
A group of Indiana pension funds opposed to Chrysler's sale to Fiat filed the emergency appeal with the Supreme Court to halt the sale.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2009
