Fiat and Chrysler Deal Completed at June 10.

Today,Chrysler says Fiat takeover complete.The move allows the U.S. automaker to emerge from bankruptcy six weeks after filing for Chapter 11 protection, and again puts the company in foreign hands.

For the second time in a decade, Chrysler finds itself in foreign hands.

The embattled automaker said this morning that it had completed its deal to be acquired by Fiat, forming a new company run by the Italian automaker and allowing it to emerge from bankruptcy.

The step came just hours after the Supreme Court cleared the last obstacle to such a deal, issuing late Tuesday a two-page order refusing to stay the sale over objections of some creditors.

Fiat will take a 20% stake in the new Chrysler and Fiat Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne will serve as the top official at Chrysler. Chrysler's chairman will be Robert Kidder, who was selected for the role last month.

The largest stakeholder in the company will be the United Auto Workers union, which is receiving a 55% share in exchange for about $6 billion owed to a retiree healthcare trust. The U.S. government, which has lent Chrysler $8.6 billion to date and will contribute more in exit financing, takes an 8% share, while Canada, another lender to the automaker, gets 2%.

The company will have a nine-member board, with four positions chosen by the U.S. government, three by Fiat, and one each by the Canadian government and the UAW.

Over time, Fiat will have the option to increase its stake to 35% or more in the company.

It, however, is not contributing any cash to the deal. Instead, Fiat has agreed to give Chrysler access to its automotive technology, particularly small, fuel-efficient engines.

In closing the deal just six weeks after Chrysler filed for Chapter 11 protection, the two automakers put an end to a painful period for the smallest of the nation's automakers, which only two years ago was sold by German automaker Daimler after that alliance proved unworkable.

"This is a very significant day, not only for Chrysler and its dedicated employees, who have persevered through a great deal of uncertainty during the past year, but for the global automotive industry as a whole," Marchionne said.

That uncertainty now hovers over General Motors Corp., which followed Chrysler into bankruptcy by filing a Chapter 11 petition on June 1. GM is a far larger, more complex company with a larger international reach, and its bankruptcy proceeding is expected to take twice as long as those of Chrysler -- if there are no unexpected hitches.

Chrysler's largest potential hold-up, a temporary stay on the sale placed by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Monday, was whisked away a day later.

Although a group of Indiana pension funds had argued that the mechanics of the deal, which had creditors sharing the $2-billion sale price of Chrysler for $6.9 in notes they held in the company, was unfair and did not respect traditional rules of priority in such cases.

In refusing to stay the sale on Tuesday, the high court did not consider the merits of that argument. Instead, it seemed to bend to concerns of expediency, in part perhaps because Fiat held an option to exit the deal if it were not closed by June 15 and because the federal government had argued to a lower court that Chrysler was losing $100 million of taxpayer money every day the sale was held up.

With the sale now completed, Chrysler can breathe a bit easier. But its new leaders have their work cut out for them.

In a tough automotive market, Chrysler's sales have fallen faster than any automaker -- down 46% through the first five months of the year.

It has excess capacity and essentially no vehicles in the compact and small classes. In short order, it must radically reshape its production, while determining how to incorporate into its line-up vehicles from Fiat, which hasn't sold cars in the U.S. in two decades.

It has not yet been determined whether Chrysler will sell those cars as Fiats, or rebadge them as Chrysler, Jeep or Dodge brand cars. Also in question is whether Fiat will bring its Alfa Romeo brand of luxury vehicles to the U.S.

It also must work to integrate a new finance company, GMAC, into its distribution channel because its former finance arm, Chrysler Financial, will no longer provide loans to dealers or customers.

To help with the transition, Marchionne will keep Jim Press, former Chrysler vice chairman and president. His new title is deputy chief executive and special advisor. But Chrysler's previous chief executive, Bob Nardelli, and its other vice chairman, Tom LaSorda, depart.

Press, among other things, was responsible for the automaker's sales and service operations. As such, he played a critical role in Chrysler's decision to eliminate 789 of its 3,200 dealers, a step that was made final on Tuesday by the bankruptcy judge overseeing the automaker's case.

News of the deal's completion elicited quick praise from some lawmakers known for their support of the auto industry.

"Chrysler is a company that can succeed and compete with anyone," said Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.). "I am glad company executives can now focus on making cars and the people who work the assembly line can get back to building those great cars."

Fiat and Chrysler Deal Confirmed Despite Court Delay

Italian automaker Fiat said Tuesday it will not turn its back on a deal to acquire a controlling stake in Chrysler despite a U.S. Supreme Court stay on the sale.

Under terms of the agreement, Fiat has the option to abandon the deal if it is not completed by June 15.

"Fiat won't walk away from Chrysler," Fiat spokesman Gualberto Ranieri said.

The U.S. Supreme Court decision on Monday to hear a challenge by three Indiana pension and construction funds could ultimately scuttle the sale. But the delay could also only be temporary. Justice Ruth Ginsburg could decide on her own to end the stay or ask the full court to decide.

If Fiat were to walk away, Chrysler would have little option but to liquidate.

The trio of funds, which hold a small part of Chrysler's debt, have been fighting the sale, claiming that it unfairly favors Chrysler's unsecured stakeholders ahead of secured debtholders like themselves.

Chrysler claims the agreement with Fiat is the best deal it can get for its assets and is critical to the company's plan to emerge from bankruptcy protection.

Fiat has offered its small car and environmentally friendly engine technology, as well as management expertise, in exchange for an initial 20 percent stake in Chrysler, which will grow to 35 percent in 5 percent increments. Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne, who was in Detroit on Tuesday laying the groundwork for the transition, will also become Chrysler's chief executive when the deal is complete.

Marchionne, who is responsible for Fiat's turnaround from a loss-making company with a string of failed models, also is expected to bring fundamental changes to the Chrysler management structure — doing away with hierarchy and making a quicker decision-making process.

Fiat plans to launch its hugely popular Fiat 500 (Cinquecento in Italian) in the United States, as well as the Alfa Romeo brand.

Marchionne also remains interested in Germany's Opel, part of General Motors Corp.'s European operations, in case negotiations fail with the leading bidder, Canadian auto parts supplier Magna International Inc.