legal guardianship
A guardian is a person who fulfills some of the responsibilities of a legal parent while the courts or birth parents may continue to hold other legal responsibilities for the child. Guardianship is subject to ongoing supervision by the court and ends by court order or when the child reaches the age of majority. Guardianship may be used as an alternative to adoption in some kinship care situations in which a child's relative is assuming a parental role but prefers not to adopt. In some states, such guardians are entitled to the same benefits as foster or adoptive parents.

legal risk adoption
Legal risk is a term used to describe a potential adoption in which the child to be adopted is placed with the adoptive parents prior to termination of the birthparents' rights. An adoption placement of a child of any age is considered to be high risk if there is a strong likelihood that a birthparent or other relative will decide (and be approved) to parent. The adoption of newborn infants is often considered high risk because one or both birthparents'consent to the adoption is not yet legally final.An adoption is considered low risk when the rights have not yet been terminated, but it is expected that they soon will be, and there is little likelihood of the child returning to birthfamily.

legally free
A child is legally free for adoption when that child's birthparents'parental rights have been terminated in a court of law.

life book, life story book
A journal or scrapbook which provides a chronicle of a child's life story and personal history. A social worker, therapist, foster parent or adoptive parent can help a child to make a life book. It can then serve as a therapeutic tool to help facilitate the child's identity formation and understanding of adoption, and also provides a way to share parts of the child's life not spent with the current parents.

long term foster care
Long term foster care, also called permanent foster care, is the intentional placing of a child in foster care for an extended, and often indefinite period of time. Long term foster care may be assigned as a goal for a child when workers believe there is no possibilities for reunification with any members of the birth family, or for adoption. It is also sometimes used as a plan for teenagers who believe they do not want a permanent family and are refusing a goal of adoption.

low risk
Legal risk is a term used to describe a potential adoption in which the child to be adopted is placed with the adoptive parents prior to termination of the birthparents' rights.An adoption is considered low risk when the rights have not yet been terminated, but it is expected that they soon will be, and there is little likelihood of the child returning to birthfamily. An adoption placement of a child of any age is considered to be high risk if there is a strong likelihood that a birthparent or other relative will decide (and be approved) to parent. The adoption of newborn infants is often considered high risk because one or both birthparents' consent to the adoption is not yet legally final. In a situation where the birthparent is voluntarily relinquishing a child, the length of the period during which a birthparent can revoke consent (change his/her mind) and the adoption is at risk varies by state.