My husband and I have decided to get divorced and plan to use a mediator (who is also an attorney). It's pretty much a joint decision and we want it to be as cheap and simple as possible without court proceedings. Theoretically we go to the mediator, hash out the details, and he writes up the document, sends it to a judge and it's all done in 6 to 8 weeks if all goes well. I know mediators are supposed to work in the best interest of both parties, but should I still have an attorney of my own look over the documents to make sure there aren't any contingencies I didn't consider? I'd like to keep costs to a minimum and would rather not hire separate attorneys. We just started the process of finding a mediator and have been told it's our option. My husband wants to be fair to me and I sure don't want more than what is fair to him, but I don't want to end up in a situation that neither of us anticipated.

Has anyone used a mediator? Any advice?

I know divorce laws vary from state to state. I live in Illinois