Ecuadorans suing Chevron Corp. over pollution in the Amazon rain forest are one step closer to collecting a $9.5 billion judgment against the San Ramon company. A U.S. appeals court on Monday lifted a lower court's order that had blocked the Ecuadorans from collecting money in the long-running lawsuit. In February, a judge in Ecuador ruled that Chevron should pay to clean up contamination in the oil fields where Texaco [now part of Chevron] once worked. But the company convinced a U.S. judge to block enforcement, arguing that the verdict was the result of fraud. Chevron even filed a criminal conspiracy case against the Ecuadorans. Monday's order by the U.S. Court of Appeals - Second Circuit put that case on hold. It also lifted the injunction…that had prevented the Ecuadorans from collecting the massive judgment against Chevron. [also refers to Petroecuador]