The American Bar Association on Friday attempted to sidestep a rising controversy over whether to bypass Atlanta as a meeting site in protest of a new Georgia law severely limiting legal abortions.

In announcing the 2021 meeting site, ABA president Bob Carlson said the board decided to relocate to Chicago, where the association is headquartered, “for economic reasons.” The meeting was originally scheduled to convene in Orlando, where the ABA previously met at Disney World.