After the contested case hearing is concluded and a final board decision is made, a party who participated in the contested case hearing and who is affected adversely by the board's decision may obtain judicial review of the decision in the circuit court pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act. An appeal taken to the circuit court from a decision of the board on a Certificate of Need application has precedence on the court's calendar and must be heard not later than forty-five days from the date the petition is filed.

1. (1) an appeal taken solely for purposes of delay or harassment;
2. (2) where no question of law is involved;
3. (3) where the appeal is without merit.

An applicant whose Certificate of Need application is denied by the board in favor of a competing application or a party adversely affected by the board's decision shall deposit a bond with the clerk of court for the circuit court before the filing of a petition to appeal a final decision of the board granting or denying a Certificate of Need. The bond must be secured by cash or a surety authorized to do business in this State in an amount equal to five percent of the total cost of the project or twenty thousand dollars, whichever is greater. If the court affirms the decision of the board or dismisses the appeal, the court may award to the applicant approved for the Certificate of Need who is a party to the appeal all or a portion of the bond and may award reasonable attorney's fees and costs incurred in the appeal. If an applicant appeals only the denial of his Certificate of Need application and there is no competing application involved in the appeal, the applicant is not required to deposit a bond with the circuit court.

If, at any stage of the appeal process involving the grant or denial of a Certificate of Need, the court finds that the appeal was frivolous, the court may award damages to the applicant approved for the Certificate of Need in addition to awarding the approved applicant single or double costs incurred in the appeal. In the case of a frivolous appeal of a denial of a Certificate of Need which does not involve a competing application, the court may award costs incurred in the appeal to the department.

As used in this section, "frivolous appeal" means any one of the following: