Section 258

If the Minister is of opinion that an appeal to a court of survey involves a question of construction or design, or of scientific difficulty, or important principle, he may refer the matter to such one or more out of a list of scientific referees from time to time approved by the Minister as appear to possess the special qualifications necessary for the particular case, and may be selected by agreement between the Minister and the appellant, or in default of any such agreement by the Minister, and thereupon the appeal shall be determined by the referee or referees, instead of by the court of survey.

The Minister, if the appellant in any appeal so requires and gives security to the satisfaction of the Minister to pay the costs of and incidental to the reference, shall refer that appeal to a referee or referees so selected as aforesaid.

The referee or referees shall have the same powers as a judge of the court of survey.[281