To find the length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle with both legs measuring 12 cm, you can use the Pythagorean theorem, which states:
\[ c^2 = a^2 + b^2 \]
where \(c\) is the hypotenuse, and \(a\) and \(b\) are the lengths of the legs of the triangle.
In this case, both legs are equal:
\[ a = 12 , \text{cm} \quad \text{and} \quad b = 12 , \text{cm} \]
So, substituting in the values:
\[ c^2 = 12^2 + 12^2 \] \[ c^2 = 144 + 144 \] \[ c^2 = 288 \]
Now, we take the square root of both sides to find \(c\):
\[ c = \sqrt{288} \approx 16.97 \]
Thus, the length of the hypotenuse, rounded to the nearest hundredth, is:
\[ \boxed{16.97} \]