A U.S. appeals court…modified a lower court order that barred Ecuadorean villagers from collecting an $8.6 billion award against Chevron…for polluting the Amazon rain forest. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals…in New York…relaxed rules in the order to allow plaintiffs' lawyers to meet with their clients and raise funds to fight Chevron in court…While the appeals court panel…denied a request to immediately freeze Kaplan's order, it did approve the Ecuadorean's request to fast-track the appeals process...The appeals court ruling added that the Ecuadoreans and their lawyers were still barred from seeking to enforce the damages award or obtain any proceeds from seizing assets. Chevron attorney Randy Mastro said that aspect of the appeals court ruling was a victory for the oil company.