I am reading a Court of Appeal judgment in which 29 of its 33 pages recount the parties’ submissions. When the court finally speaks for itself, there is barely any independent analysis. It agrees with the trial court without adequately explaining why. Reproducing arguments is not resolving them. An appellate court must confront the alleged errors, weigh the competing arguments and explain why the decision below should stand or fall. Judges must do the hard work of reasoning through their judgments. The parties have already written the submissions. What they need from the court is a reasoned decision.