''Cui bono?'' (), in English "to whom is it a benefit?", is a
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
phrase
In grammar, a phrasecalled expression in some contextsis a group of words or singular word acting as a grammatical unit. For instance, the English language, English expression "the very happy squirrel" is a noun phrase which contains the adject ...
about identifying crime
suspect
In law enforcement jargon, a suspect is a known person accused or suspected of committing a crime. Police and reporters in the United States often use the word suspect as a jargon when referring to the perpetrator of the offense (perp in dated U. ...
s. It depends on the fact that
crimes
In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...
are often committed to benefit their perpetrators; especially financially.
Use
The phrase is a
double dative construction. It can also be rendered as ''cui prodest?'' ("whom does it profit?") and ''ad cuius bonum?'' ("for whose good?").
Background
Cicero himself used the expression ''Cui bono'' in his 'Second Philippic', once again invoking Cassius as the source: "... adopt that maxim of Cassius: To whose advantage was it?"
[Cicero, ]Philippics
A philippic () is a fiery, damning speech, or tirade, delivered to condemn a particular political actor. The term is most famously associated with three noted orators of the ancient world: Demosthenes of ancient Athens, Cato the Elder and Marcus ...
2.(14).35
/ref>
American sociologist Peter Blau has used the concept of ''cui bono'' to differentiate organizations depending on who has primarily benefited: owners; members; specific others; or the general society.[Blau, Peter (1962): 'Formal Organizations: A Comparative Approach'.]
See also
* Cherchez la femme
''Cherchez la femme'' () is a French phrase which literally means 'look for the woman'. It is a cliche in detective fiction, used to suggest that a mystery can be resolved by identifying a femme fatale or female love interest. The phrase embodi ...
* Follow the money
"Follow the money" is a catchphrase popularized by the 1976 docudrama film ''All the President's Men (film), All the President's Men'', which suggests political corruption can be brought to light by examining money transfers between parties.
Origi ...
* Milgram experiment
* Whodunit
A ''whodunit'' (less commonly spelled as ''whodunnit''; a colloquial elision of "Who asdone it?") is a complex plot-driven variety of detective fiction
Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an criminal ...
General:
* Brocard (law)
* List of Latin phrases
This is a list of Wikipedia articles of Latin phrases and their translation into English.
To view all phrases on a single, lengthy document, see: List of Latin phrases (full).
Lists of pages
* List of Latin phrases (A)
* List of Latin phrases ( ...
* List of legal Latin terms
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cui Bono
Adages
Criminology
Conflict of interest
Latin legal terminology
Articles titled with a question