A judge on Tuesday gave creditors of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc the green light to vote on the failed bank's $65 billion payback proposal, clearing a major hurdle in Lehman's path toward ending the biggest bankruptcy in U.S. history.

Judge James Peck made his ruling at a hearing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan.

Lehman filed for bankruptcy on September 15, 2008, with $639 billion in assets. The filing was six times larger than any previous U.S. bankruptcy and was considered to be a key catalyst of the financial crisis.

(Reporting by Nick Brown; Writing by Martha Graybow; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)

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