diff --git a/Stdlib/Tree/BinarySearchTree.php b/Stdlib/Tree/BinarySearchTree.php
index 2686b3075..0150cfb7b 100644
--- a/Stdlib/Tree/BinarySearchTree.php
+++ b/Stdlib/Tree/BinarySearchTree.php
@@ -53,7 +53,7 @@ public function __construct(Node $root = null)
      *
      * @since 1.0.0
      */
-    public function search(mixed $data) : ?Node
+    public function &search(mixed $data) : ?Node
     {
         if ($this->root === null) {
             return null;