The goal of Wilson County Department of Social services is for every child to have a permanent family as soon as possible. In some situations, it is possible to place a child in what is termed by the Agency as a "legal risk adoptive placement." A legal risk adoptive placement is the placement of a child who is not legally cleared for adoption at the time placement occurs. The family selected for placement of a child in such situations should have completed the Pre-Placement Assessment and be deemed suitable to meet the child's needs. Prior to placement, the family should be fully informed of the child's legal status and of the potential for removal of the child from their home should legal clearance not be accomplished for some reason. The family should be given time to carefully and thoroughly consider all aspects of undertaking a legal risk placement.

The purpose of legal risk placement is to move the child into a permanent home as soon as possible without jeopardizing the legal or social well-being of the child. Since the child is not yet cleared for adoption, the home in which the child is to be placed must be licensed as a foster home. Legal risk placements may be considered for children in any one of the following circumstances:

1. Termination of parental rights has been granted and is under appeal.
2. Termination of parental rights has been established for one parent and termination of parental rights for the other parent waits only publication to notify the absent parent of the termination proceedings, and subsequent termination adjudication. Documentation of attempts to locate the absent parent must be available.
3. A petition for involuntary termination of parental rights has been filed but the Court has not yet entered its order, the Attorney General or the Agency's attorney has been consulted and stated that termination is likely and that the legal risk placement would not jeopardize the outcome of the termination hearing.