55Authentication of documents.
(1)Any notice, consent, approval, demand or other document which any authority, board or water undertakers are authorised or required by, or under, this Act or any local enactment incorporating any provisions of the Third Schedule to this Act to give make or issue may be signed—
(a)on behalf of a local authority,—
(i)by the clerk of the authority;
(ii)by the water engineer or manager of the water department or the surveyor or the chief financial officer of the authority as respects documents relating to matters within their respective provinces ;
(iii)by any officer of the authority authorised by them in writing to sign documents of the particular kind or, as the case may be, the particular document;
(b)on behalf of any board or any authority other than a local authority, by the clerk or secretary of the board or authority;
(c)on behalf of water undertakers not being a local authority,—
(i)by the clerk or secretary of the undertakers;
(ii)by any other officer of the undertakers authorised by them in writing to sign documents of the particular kind or, as the case may be, the particular document.
(2)Any document purporting to bear the signature of any person expressed to hold an office by virtue of which he is under this section empowered to sign such a document, or expressed to be duly authorised by the authority, board or water undertakers to sign such a document or the particular document shall for the purposes of this Act or any local enactment incorporating any provisions of the Third Schedule to this Act, and of any byelaws made thereunder, be deemed, until the contrary is proved, to be duly given, made or issued by authority of the authority, board or undertakers concerned.
In this subsection the expression " signature " includes a facsimile of a signature by whatever process reproduced.