Cui bono also rendered as Cui prodest, is a Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 adage

Adage

An adage is a short but memorable saying which holds some important fact of experience that is considered true by many people, or that has gained some credibility through its long use....

 that is used either to suggest a hidden motive or to indicate that the party responsible for something may not be who it appears at first to be.

Commonly the phrase is used to suggest that the person or people guilty

Guilty

Guilty commonly refers to the feeling of guilt, an experience that occurs when a person believes that they have violated a moral standard.Guilty or The Guilty may also refer to:-Law:*Guilty plea, a formal admission of legal culpability...

 of committing a crime

Crime

Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...

 may be found among those who have something to gain, chiefly with an eye toward financial gain. The party that benefits may not always be obvious or may have successfully diverted attention to a scapegoat

Scapegoat

Scapegoating is the practice of singling out any party for unmerited negative treatment or blame. Scapegoating may be conducted by individuals against individuals , individuals against groups , groups against individuals , and groups against groups Scapegoating is the practice of singling out any...

, for example.

The Roman orator and statesman Marcus Tullius Cicero, in his speech Pro Roscio Amerino

Pro Roscio Amerino

The speech Pro Roscio Amerino was given by Marcus Tullius Cicero on behalf of Roscius of Ameria. Roscius was accused of murdering his father. The speech was given by Cicero in 80 BCE.- Events surrounding the case :...

, section 84, attributed the expression cui bono to the Roman

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

 consul

Consul

Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...

 and censor

Censor (ancient Rome)

The censor was an officer in ancient Rome who was responsible for maintaining the census, supervising public morality, and overseeing certain aspects of the government's finances....

 Lucius Cassius Longinus Ravilla

Lucius Cassius Longinus Ravilla

Lucius Cassius Longinus Ravilla was a Roman consul in 127 BC.As a tribune of Concilium Plebis in 137 BC he put forward and passed the Lex Cassia Tabellaria . In 127 BC he was consul with Lucius Cornelius Cinna and in 125 BC he was elected censor...

:
Another example of Cicero using "cui bono" is in his defence of Milo, in the Pro Milone

Pro Milone

The Pro Tito Annio Milone ad iudicem oratio is a speech made by Marcus Tullius Cicero on behalf of his friend Titus Annius Milo. Milo was accused of murdering his political enemy Publius Clodius Pulcher on the Via Appia...

. He even makes a reference to Cassius: "let that maxim of Cassius apply".

See also

• Brocard (legal term)
• List of legal Latin terms
• List of Latin phrases
• 9/11 Conspiracy Theories section Motives