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Permanency Options Comparison Chart Children's Law Center Form

Use a Permanency Options Comparison Chart Children's Law Center template to make your document workflow more streamlined.

What the permanency options chart does

The Permanency Options Comparison Chart is a case-review document for comparing possible permanency pathways for a child and recording the considerations supporting that comparison. It is not, by itself, an adoption decree, guardianship order, or court filing. A Children’s Law Center team can complete the chart, identify the authorized reviewers, and route it through signNow for acknowledgments or signatures. The final chart, signing history, and access controls should remain subject to the organization’s confidentiality, case-management, and records-retention policies.

Who uses the permanency options chart

Child welfare teams

Children’s Law Center staff can use this chart to compare permanency pathways, document case considerations, and prepare an informed discussion with families and legal teams.

Case participants

Attorneys, social workers, and caregivers can review the chart together before recording decisions in the related case file or service plan.

How the permanency chart workflow works

Use the chart as a controlled review document: prepare the comparison, route it to authorized participants, and preserve the completed record.

  • Upload chart: Upload the completed comparison chart to signNow.
  • Place fields: Add fields for staff, counsel, or participant acknowledgments.
  • Send securely: Send the chart to each authorized reviewer.
  • Complete record: Store the signed chart with its audit trail.

Quick steps for completing the chart

Prepare the child-specific comparison first, then use signNow to route the document and preserve its completion evidence.

  • Upload chart:

    Upload the completed chart PDF.
  • Detect fields:

    Let signNow detect fillable fields.
  • Assign roles:

    Assign reviewers and signature fields.
  • Send chart:

    Send the chart for acknowledgment.
  • Store record:

    Download the signed chart and audit trail.

Recommended chart workflow setup

Configure the chart workflow around authorized reviewers, documented acknowledgments, and the Children’s Law Center’s case-record policy.

SettingRecommendation
Authentication methodEmail link with SMS OTP
Signature typeElectronic acknowledgment
Audit trailEnabled for every completed chart
Document retentionApply Children’s Law Center policy
EncryptionTLS 1.2 or 1.3 and AES-256
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Inside the chart’s signNow audit trail

The audit trail records evidence about the completed permanency chart separately from the administrative steps used to prepare and send it.

01

Authenticate signer:

Records the signer’s email-link or configured authentication event.
02

Capture timestamps:

Captures signing and review timestamps.
03

Hash document:

Associates activity with the chart document.
04

Seal record:

Preserves changes through tamper-evident document history.
05

Record activity:

Logs signer actions and access events.
06

Export trail:

Allows authorized users to retrieve or export evidence.

Features for permanency option reviews

The chart brings permanency alternatives, case considerations, and review acknowledgments into one controlled document workflow for Children’s Law Center teams.

Clear comparison

A structured comparison keeps adoption, guardianship, reunification, and other permanency pathways visible in one document for focused case review.

Organized analysis

Document the factors considered for each permanency option without relying on scattered notes, emails, or separate worksheets.

Reusable format

Reusable fields help Children’s Law Center teams prepare consistent charts for matters involving different children, families, and case circumstances.

Review history

Routing the completed chart through signNow records who reviewed it and when, supporting a traceable internal workflow.

Remote signatures

Electronic signing can reduce handoffs when authorized staff, counsel, or other participants must acknowledge the completed comparison.

Stored record

A completed PDF and audit trail provide a consolidated record for internal files, subject to applicable confidentiality and retention policies.

Platform requirements for completing the chart

Prepare and review the Permanency Options Comparison Chart in an up-to-date browser such as Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Edge on Windows, macOS, iOS, or Android. signNow protects connections with TLS 1.2 or TLS 1.3.

  • Browsers Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge
  • Operating systems Windows, macOS, iOS, Android
  • Devices Desktop and mobile web access

Organizations should use managed devices when the chart contains confidential child-welfare information. Administrators can align access with internal identity controls, configure SSO or API workflows where available, and preserve the completed chart and audit trail in an approved case-record system.

Security controls for confidential charts

Encrypted in transit:

TLS 1.2 and 1.3

Encrypted at rest:

AES-256 encryption

Independent controls:

SOC 2 Type II certified

Information security:

ISO 27001 certified

Protected health data:

HIPAA compliant with BAA

Electronic signatures:

ESIGN and UETA compliant

Integrations for chart administration

Named signNow integrations can connect chart preparation, review routing, and approved record storage without changing the chart’s case-specific content.

Salesforce
Procore
Zapier
Microsoft Teams
Hub spot
Box
Microsoft

Processing stages for the permanency chart

The chart’s processing time depends on case readiness and reviewer availability; the workflow below separates preparation, review, and record completion.

01

Prepare the chart

Complete the comparison fields and verify the child-specific information before routing.
02

Deliver to reviewers

Send the chart to named reviewers using signNow’s email delivery or signing link.
03

Collect review

Reviewers complete assigned fields and acknowledgments according to the case workflow.
04

Archive the record

Download the completed chart and audit trail into the approved case repository.

Record-keeping practices for the chart

A controlled record process protects the chart’s confidentiality while preserving the evidence needed to understand who reviewed and acknowledged the permanency comparison.

Apply the approved retention policy

Use the Children’s Law Center’s approved retention policy for the completed chart and related case materials. If the chart contains protected health information, apply the applicable HIPAA record policy; HIPAA requires six years for specified documentation under 45 CFR 164.530(j).

Export the audit trail with the chart

Export the signNow audit trail with the completed chart so reviewer identity, timestamps, authentication events, and document activity remain available together during later case review.

Restrict access to authorized reviewers

Limit access to authorized Children’s Law Center personnel, counsel, and participants whose involvement is documented. Use role-based permissions and avoid sending chart copies through unsecured personal email accounts.

Archive the final record securely

Archive the final PDF and audit trail in the organization’s approved repository, using a case identifier and revision date. Preserve earlier versions only when policy requires them for the case record.

Privacy pitfalls in permanency comparisons

  • Including unnecessary names, diagnoses, addresses, or case details can expose sensitive child and family information beyond the chart’s review purpose.
  • A missing consent or acknowledgment field can leave reviewers’ positions unclear when the completed chart is later examined.
  • Sending the chart to a personal email address can create an uncontrolled copy outside the Children’s Law Center’s approved case system.
  • Using a shared template without checking child-specific fields can place one family’s information into another permanency comparison.

Risks from incomplete chart handling

Review dispute

Unclear basis for decision

Incomplete record

Missing acknowledgment fields

Privacy exposure

Unauthorized access

Version conflict

Untracked revisions

Troubleshooting the permanency chart workflow

Resolve field, reviewer, privacy, and recordkeeping questions before treating the Permanency Options Comparison Chart as complete.

Upload the chart as a PDF, then inspect detected fields before assigning reviewers. signNow’s templates and field tools allow staff to correct missing or misplaced signature, date, or text fields before sending.

Use assigned roles and required fields to identify who must review or acknowledge each section. The Business plan includes templates and audit trails; the sender should verify every required field before delivery.

Business includes legally binding eSignatures and audit trails. Business Premium adds bulk send, but a single permanency chart generally requires only an individually assigned workflow unless the organization has repeated standardized cases.

If the chart contains protected health information, signNow identifies HIPAA compliance as available with a business associate agreement. The Children’s Law Center must still apply its own privacy controls and approved disclosure procedures.

ESIGN and UETA support electronic signatures when intent, consent, attribution, and record reproducibility are established. The chart is not a substitute for a court order, decree, or other excluded document.

Export the completed PDF and audit trail from signNow, then store them in the approved case repository. Retention depends on the Children’s Law Center’s policy and any applicable state or federal rule.

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