After nearly six months of legal wrangling over pensions and debt, the city of Detroit was allowed on Tuesday to receive bankruptcy protection.

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Steven W. Rhodes found that "Detroit was insolvent" and could cut pension checks for retired employees along with other debts.

Detroit is currently $18 billion in debt. According to the emergency city manager, Kevyn Orr, unfunded pension obligations make up approximately $3.5 billion of that debt.

Labor groups and Detroit's public pension funds opposed the decision to file for Chapter 9 bankruptcy, arguing that the city manager installed by the State of Michigan did not seek alternatives before filing for bankruptcy in July.

The groups also argued that pension debts should be excluded from the bankruptcy, since the Michigan state constitution forbids pensions from being cut or reduced.

In Tuesday's ruling, Rhodes said that "nothing distinguishes pension debts from other debts, despite the state constitution."

Detroit is the largest municipality in the United States to have filed for bankruptcy protection.  Two cities in California, San Bernardino and Stockton, filed for bankruptcy in mid-2012.

Read more about Detroit's bankruptcy at the New York Times, Fox News, and follow the Detroit Free Press live blog.

Reach Executive Producer Colin Hale here. Follow him on Twitter.