This paper introduces in cross standard form (CSF) as a solution to the inverse optimal control problem. That is, the CSF is a canonical standard problem whose unique H-infinity or H-2 optimal controller is a given controller. From the control design point of view, the general idea is to apply the CSF to a given controller in order to set up a standard problem which can be completed to handle frequency domain H-2 or H-infinity specification. The analytical formulation of the CSF proposed in this paper can be applied to reduced-, full- or augmented-order compensators or two-degree of freedom compensations. Numerical and academic examples are given.