MINNEAPOLIS — A federal bankruptcy judge declined Thursday to extend next week’s deadline for victims of clergy sex abuse to file claims against the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

Victims’ attorneys challenged the Aug. 3 deadline, asking the court to extend it to next May.

But U.S. bankruptcy judge Robert Kressel reaffirmed his April decision, designed to expedite the archdiocese’s reorganization plan, the Star Tribune reported. He said abuse victims had received ample notice about the deadline.

“It’s important to reach out, and I think we have,” Kressel said.

Attorneys for the archdiocese were against extending the deadline, saying it would complicate its reorganization and lead to more fees.