Bankruptcy Stay Orders Immediately Appealable, Justices Say (1)

A bankruptcy court’s ruling on a creditor’s request to lift the automatic stay against a debtor is an immediately appealable decision, the U.S. Supreme Court said.

Bankruptcy cases’ unique structure creates a final order when a motion to peel back debtors’ protections is approved or rejected, according to Ritzen Group v. Jackson Masonry, a unanimous decision written by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Tuesday.

The “adjudication of a motion for relief from the automatic stay forms a discrete procedural unit within the embracive bankruptcy case” that can be challenged without waiting to see how the remainder of the case plays ...