U.S. District Judge Edward R. Korman Rules on Emergency Contraceptives for Women of All Ages

Personal Life

Edward R. Korman graduated from Brooklyn College in 1963. In 1966, he earned his LL.B from Brooklyn Law School and he received his LL.M from New York University in 1971. From 1966 to 1968, Edward clerked for Kenneth B. Keating of the New York Court of Appeals. From 1968 to 1970, he served as an associate with the law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. Subsequently, Edward worked as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York from 1970 until 1972 and he was an Assistant to the Solicitor General of the U.S. from 1972 until 1974. From 1974 to 1978, he returned to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York and he worked as Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney. Edward also served as U.S. Attorney from 1978 until 1982.


After he left public service, Edward became a partner with the law firm of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan from 1982 to 1984. He was a Professor of Law at Brooklyn Law School from 1984 to 1985. Edward was also a Chairman of the Mayor’s Committee on New York City Marshals and a member of the Temporary Commission of Investigation of the State of New York from 1983 until 1985.

On October 2, 1985, President Ronald Reagan nominated Edward to a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. On November 1, 1985, the U.S. Senate confirmed the judge and he was commissioned three days later. Edward entered service on December 16, 1985. He served as Chief Judge of the Eastern District of New York from 2000 until 2007. The judge assumed senior status in 2007. Edward has presided over several high-profile cases while serving as a judge, which includes litigation arising from the 2003 Staten Island Ferry crash, lawsuits against Swiss banks by Holocaust victims, the Irv Gotti money-laundering trial, and an action relating to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s denial of full over-the-counter status to the Plan B emergency contraceptive.

U.S. District Judge Edward R. Korman Delivers Ruling Which Permits Women of All Ages to Have Access to the Morning-after Pills

According to a New York Daily News editorial, “Federal Judge Edward Korman takes age restrictions off morning-after pills,” in 2011 President Obama praised Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius for excluding girls who were under seventeen from purchasing the morning-after pill without a prescription. Obama didn’t like the idea of ten and eleven year-old girls purchasing pregnancy prevention medicine as easily as candy at a store. The President stated, “As the father of two daughters, it makes sense to apply some common sense.”

However, according to the New York Daily News article, U.S. District Judge Edward R. Korman has ruled that parents, including the President of the U.S. and First Lady, have no legal authority over whether young girls can take a contraceptive pill the day after they had sexual intercourse. The contraceptive called Plan B is a dose of hormones which prevents pregnancy if used twenty-four to seventy-two hours after unprotected intercourse. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has already claimed that the pill is effective and most importantly safe for girls, no matter how young they are. Judge Edward considered the weight of the FDA’s science before delivering his ruling. Although he believes children “should not be engaging in conduct that necessitates the use of such drugs,” the judge concurred that the FDA is required to focus on approving the safety of medications and not on the behavior of why little girls take it. Edward noted, “The standards are the same for aspirin and for contraceptives.”

According to a Philly.com column, “Inquirer Editorial: Morning-after ruling speaks to need for sex ed,” Judge Edward overturned Obama administration’s decision to make Plan B not accessible to girls under seventeen without a prescription. The Philly editorial reports that the contraceptive is not available over the counter at pharmacies. Individuals who want to purchase the drug must provide a validated ID for the pharmacist to prove their age. Judge Edward’s ruling, if not challenged, would change these current restrictions within thirty days.

The Philly article pointed out that the U.S. Justice Department has not yet decided if they will appeal Judge Edward’s ruling. However, the White House stated that the President still supports Sebelius’ decision to place age constraints on the contraceptive drug. In 2011, Obama asserted, “I think it is important for us to make sure that we apply some common sense to various rules when it comes to over-the-counter medicine.”

The debate over whether children under seventeen should have access to Plan B without a prescription will certainly be a hot topic for discussion. Some critics believe making the contraceptive drug available without age constraints will permit more teenagers to become sexual active. According to the Philly editorial, Advocates for giving Plan B to children acknowledged that the contraceptive could reduce the chances of pregnancy by up to a whopping eighty-nine percent. The drug must be taken twenty four to seventy two hours after unprotected intercourse in order to be effective.