Like parents by turn concerned and exasperated over self-centred offspring, the British and Irish governments privately were focusing their attention on how Sinn Fein and the pro-Belfast Agreement wing of the Ulster Unionist Party would react to the publication of the Review of the Criminal Justice System in Northern Ireland yesterday.
A report that appeared to favour primarily one side or the other had the potential to scupper whatever lingering chance remains to break the political deadlock over decommissioning and devolution. It is an indication of the delicate balancing act performed by the authors of this 447-page report that reaction so far from these quarters has been measured and restrained.
The review was established under the terms of the Belfast Agreement and carried out by a nine-member body, four of whom were Northern Ireland Office officials.
Mr David Trimble is said to be quite sanguine about the bulk of the 294 proposals in it.
Sinn Fein, like everybody else trying to come to terms with such a bulky document, is deferring a detailed response. The party's justice spokeswoman, Ms Bairbre de Brun, expressed concerns about the time-frame - a year or more - for the implementation of the proposals and the section of the report that recommends the maintenance of British symbols outside courthouses.
"Our ultimate response will depend on whether the report can provide human rights and justice for everyone," Ms de Brun said yesterday.
There will be a six-month consultation period to allow interested parties to study the document and make their own proposals for change. Sinn Fein, the UUP, the SDLP and other interested bodies will undoubtedly avail of that opportunity.
After that it will be in the hands of the British government whether to proceed with this major overhaul of the criminal justice system.
Fundamentally, the review sets out to create a more accountable prosecution service and a judiciary that is more representative of the public it serves.
The review members would not give a breakdown of the religious or political make-up of the judiciary yesterday but it is believed that nationalists and Catholics are seriously underrepresented. Also, among the 24 High Court and County Court judges there is only one woman.
In the event of a return to devolution, the review group recommends the creation of a judicial appointments commission, with five judges, a solicitor, a barrister and four or five lay members. The lay members would come from both sides of the community, including both men and women.
The appointments commission would have responsibility for appointing all judges, apart from the Lord Chief Justice and the three Lords Justice of Appeal. These appointments would be made by the monarch, on the recommendations of the British prime minister. The first and deputy first ministers would in the first instance make recommendations to the prime minister.
While, all this is contingent on the resumption of the executive, sources in the review body said that if it were impossible to achieve devolution, the appointments commission could be fine-tuned so that it could still operate under direct rule.
The review group has sought to find a compromise on the symbols question, which is threatening to undermine the Patten proposals on policing. A Northern Ireland solution to a Northern Ireland problem, it suggests the royal coats of arms should continue to be displayed outside courts and that the Union flag should fly on designated days outside courthouses.
Inside, however, the courts should be completely free of symbols and the practice of crying "God Save the Queen" in some courts should be discontinued.
If adopted, the report would also see an end to some of the pomp and circumstance of the courts. Wigs would go, except on ceremonial occasions. The language of the courts would be simplified. Irish might be spoken during cases.
The other crucial element of the review relates to the creation of a single independent prosecuting authority to cover all cases currently handled by the police and the office of the DPP. This would lead to the creation of about 150 posts of prosecutors, who would be either solicitors or barristers, and who would have some degree of autonomy, although ultimately answerable to the DPP, which would be renamed the Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland.
At present police officers are responsible for handling about 30,000 court cases ranging from motoring offences to assault and minor cases of theft. The prosecutors would assume that role, in theory freeing up the police for their work in combating crime.
The Public Prosecution Service would be answerable to an attorney-general appointed by the first minister and deputy first minister. A department of justice is also envisaged. It is unclear whether in the absence of devolution the attorney-general post would still be created. But the new prosecuting system would be established with or without devolution.
Civil liberties groups and nationalists have long complained that the DPP is unaccountable for his actions. They cite several cases, including that of the murder of Pat Finucane, as examples of where justice was not seen to be done. A significant proposal in the review will allow prosecutors - "without prejudicing the interests of justice or the public interest" - to provide explanations as to why there were no prosecutions in certain cases.
The report also proposes greater co-operation with the criminal justice agencies in the South and it favours the setting up of a law commission for Northern Ireland.