DETROIT — A federal judge ruled Wednesday a 2009 bankruptcy order shields General Motors from billions of dollars in death and injury claims tied to defective ignition switches in older small cars.

But Judge Robert Gerber in New York, who handled GM’s government-funded bankruptcy case six years ago, also ruled plaintiffs who claim a loss in the value of their cars can still sue General Motors, but only for company actions that happened after it left bankruptcy in July of 2009.

The ruling is at least a partial victory for GM, with one plaintiffs’ attorney saying it shields the company from $7 billion to $10 billion in potential liabilities.

In 2009, Gerber allowed “new GM” to emerge from bankruptcy protection free from liabilities. But the plaintiffs recently argued GM misled the court six years ago because it knew about but failed to disclose the ignition switch problem.