The Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald has welcomed a Supreme Court surrogacy decision confirming that motherhood is based on birth rather than genetics.

The court today overturned a landmark High Court ruling from last year which found that the genetic mother should be recognised on her children's birth certificates.

Ms Fitzgerald believes the ruling will provide certainty to the hundreds of women who have given birth to children using donated eggs.

In a statement, she said a landmark High Court ruling last year cast doubt on their status as their children's mother and that is why the state had to appeal the decision.

The state may have won, but it is clear from today's judgments that the Supreme Court believes current laws are out of date when it comes to the radical scientific developments in assisted reproduction.

Mr Justice Adrian Hardiman says the disconnect is so serious it is as if road traffic law had failed to reflect the advent of the motor car.

And this afternoon in a statement, the Health Minister Leo Varadkar said legislation on assisted human reproduction is overdue.

He says he will bring proposals for a new bill to government before the year is out.

Solicitor Marian Campbell acts for the genetic parents and spoke to reporters outside court.

And Ms Campbell said there needs to be legislation in place to deal with this and other similar situations.