Exhibit 5.1
555 Eleventh Street, N.W., Suite 1000 | ||||||||
Washington, D.C. 20004-1304 | ||||||||
Tel: (202) 637-2200 Fax: (202) 637-2201 | ||||||||
www.lw.com | ||||||||
| FIRM / AFFILIATE OFFICES | |||||||
Brussels | New York | |||||||
Chicago | Northern Virginia | |||||||
Frankfurt | Orange County | |||||||
Hamburg | Paris | |||||||
Hong Kong | San Diego | |||||||
London | San Francisco | |||||||
July 12, 2006 | Los Angeles | Shanghai | ||||||
Milan | SiliconValley | |||||||
Moscow | Singapore | |||||||
Munich | Tokyo | |||||||
New Jersey | Washington,D.C. | |||||||
Host Hotels & Resorts, L.P. | File No. 021344-0060 | |||||||
6903 Rockledge Drive Suite 1500 Bethesda, Maryland 20817 |
Re: | Registration Statement for $800,000,000 Aggregate Principal Amount of 6 3/4% Series Q Senior Notes due 2016 |
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We have acted as special counsel to Host Hotels & Resorts, L.P., a Delaware limited partnership (the “Company”), in connection with the issuance of up to $800,000,000 aggregate principal amount of 6 3/4% Series Q Senior Notes due 2016 (the “Securities”) and the guarantees of the Securities (the “Guarantees”) by the guarantors listed on Schedule A (the “Guarantors”), under the Nineteenth Supplemental Indenture dated April 4, 2006, among the Company, the Guarantors and The Bank of New York, as trustee (the “Trustee”) and the Twentieth Supplemental Indenture dated June 15, 2006, among the Company, the Guarantors and the Trustee, which collectively supplement the Amended and Restated Indenture, dated as of August 5, 1998 (as so supplemented, the “Indenture”) originally among the Company, the guarantors named therein and HSBC Bank USA (f/k/a Marine Midland Bank), as trustee, and pursuant to a registration statement on Form S-4 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”), filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on June 16, 2006 (File No. 333-135077), as amended by Amendment No. 1, filed with the Commission on July 12, 2006 (the “Registration Statement”). This opinion is being furnished in accordance with the requirements of Item 601(b)(5) of Regulation S-K under the Act, and no opinion is expressed herein as to any matter pertaining to the contents of the Registration Statement or Prospectus, other than as to the enforceability of the Securities and Guarantees.
As such counsel, we have examined such matters of fact and questions of law as we have considered appropriate for purposes of this letter. With your consent, we have relied upon the foregoing and upon certificates and other assurances of officers of the Company and others as to factual matters without having independently verified such factual matters.
We are opining herein as to the internal laws of the State of New York, the Delaware Revised Uniform Limited Partnership Act and the Delaware Limited Liability Company Act and we express no opinion with respect to the applicability thereto, or the effect thereon, of the laws of any other jurisdiction or, in the case of Delaware, any other laws, or as to any matters of
July 12, 2006
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municipal law or the laws of any local agencies within any state. Various matters concerning the laws of Minnesota; Massachusetts; Texas; Nova Scotia, Canada; Florida and Alberta, Canada are addressed in the opinions of Dorsey & Whitney LLP; Bingham McCutchen LLP; Kane, Russell, Coleman & Logan, P.C.; Cox Hanson O’Reilly Matheson; Ruden, McClosky, Smith, Schuster & Russell, P.A. and Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, which has been separately provided to you. We express no opinion with respect to those matters herein, and to the extent elements of those opinions are necessary to the conclusions expressed herein, we have, with your consent, assumed such matters.
Subject to the foregoing and the other matters set forth herein, it is our opinion that as of the date hereof:
(1) When the Securities have been duly executed, issued, authenticated and delivered by or on behalf of the Company against delivery and payment therefor in accordance with the Indenture, the Securities and the Guarantees will have been duly authorized by all necessary partnership or limited liability company action of the Company and each of the Guarantors organized in the State of Delaware, respectively, and will be legally valid and binding obligations of the Company and the Guarantors, respectively, enforceable against them in accordance with their respective terms.
The opinion rendered in paragraph 1 relating to the enforceability of the Securities and the Guarantees, respectively, is subject to the following exceptions, limitations and qualifications: (a) the effect of bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, preference, fraudulent transfer, moratorium or other similar laws relating to or affecting the rights and remedies of creditors; (b) the effect of general principles of equity, whether enforcement is considered in a proceeding in equity or at law (including the possible unavailability of specific performance or injunctive relief), concepts of materiality, reasonableness, good faith and fair dealing, and the discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought; (c) the unenforceability under certain circumstances under law or court decisions of provisions providing for the indemnification of or contribution to a party with respect to a liability where such indemnification or contribution is contrary to public policy; (d) we express no opinion concerning the enforceability of (i) the waiver of rights or defenses contained in Section 4.4 of the Indenture; (ii) any provision requiring the payment of attorneys’ fees, where such payment is contrary to law or public policy; or (iii) any provision to the extent it requires any party to indemnify any other person against loss in obtaining the currency due following a court judgment rendered in another currency.
With your consent, we have assumed (a) that the Indenture has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by, and constitutes a legally valid and binding obligation of, the Trustee, enforceable against it in accordance with its terms, (b) that the Indenture has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by each of the Guarantors organized in a jurisdiction other than Delaware and (c) that the status of the Indenture and the Securities and the Guarantees as legally valid and binding obligations of the respective parties thereto is not affected by any (i) breaches of, or defaults under, agreements or instruments, (ii) violations of statutes, rules, regulations or court or governmental orders, or (iii) failures to obtain required consents, approvals or authorizations from, or make required registrations, declarations or filings with, governmental authorities.
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This opinion is for your benefit in connection with the Registration Statement and may be relied upon by you and by persons entitled to rely upon it pursuant to the applicable provisions of federal securities laws. We consent to your filing this opinion as an exhibit to the Registration Statement and to the reference to our firm contained in the Prospectus under the heading “Validity of Securities.” In giving such consent, we do not thereby admit that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Act or the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.
Very truly yours,
/s/ Latham & Watkins LLP
July 12, 2006
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SCHEDULE A
Guarantors
Name | Jurisdiction of Formation | |
HMH Rivers, L.P | Delaware | |
HMH Marina LLC | Delaware | |
HMC SBM Two LLC | Delaware | |
HMC PLP LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Retirement Properties, L.P. | Delaware | |
HMH Pentagon LLC | Delaware | |
Airport Hotels LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Capital Resources LLC | Delaware | |
YBG Associates LLC | Delaware | |
PRM LLC | Delaware | |
Host Park Ridge LLC | Delaware | |
Host of Boston, Ltd. | Massachusetts | |
Host of Houston, Ltd. | Texas | |
Host of Houston 1979 | Texas | |
Philadelphia Airport Hotel LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Hartford LLC | Delaware | |
HMH Norfolk LLC | Delaware | |
HMH Norfolk, L.P | Delaware | |
HMC Park Ridge LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Suites LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Suites Limited Partnership | Delaware | |
Wellsford-Park Ridge HMC Hotel Limited Partnership | Delaware | |
HMC Burlingame LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Capital LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Grand LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Hotel Development LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Mexpark LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Polanco LLC | Delaware | |
HMC NGL LLC | Delaware | |
HMC OLS I L.P | Delaware | |
HMC Seattle LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Swiss Holdings LLC | Delaware | |
HMH Restaurants LLC | Delaware | |
HMH Rivers LLC | Delaware | |
HMH WTC LLC | Delaware | |
Host La Jolla LLC | Delaware | |
City Center Hotel Limited Partnership | Minnesota | |
PM Financial LLC | Delaware |
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PM Financial LP | Delaware | |
HMC Chicago LLC | Delaware | |
HMC HPP LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Desert LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Hanover LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Diversified LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Properties I LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Potomac LLC | Delaware | |
HMC East Side II LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Manhattan Beach LLC | Delaware | |
Chesapeake Hotel Limited Partnership | Delaware | |
HMH General Partner Holdings LLC | Delaware | |
HMC IHP Holdings LLC | Delaware | |
HMC OP BN LLC | Delaware | |
S.D. Hotels LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Gateway LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Pacific Gateway LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Market Street LLC | Delaware | |
New Market Street LP | Delaware | |
Times Square LLC | Delaware | |
Times Square GP LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Atlanta LLC | Delaware | |
Ivy Street LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Properties II LLC | Delaware | |
Santa Clara HMC LLC | Delaware | |
HMC BCR Holdings LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Palm Desert LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Georgia LLC | Delaware | |
HMC SFO LLC | Delaware | |
Market Street Host LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Property Leasing LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Host Restaurants LLC | Delaware | |
Durbin LLC | Delaware | |
HMC HT LLC | Delaware | |
HMC JWDC LLC | Delaware | |
HMC OLS I LLC | Delaware | |
HMC OLS II L.P. | Delaware | |
HMC/Interstate Manhattan Beach, L.P. | Delaware | |
Ameliatel | Florida | |
HMC Amelia I LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Amelia II LLC | Delaware | |
Rockledge Hotel LLC | Delaware | |
Fernwood Hotel LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Copley LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Headhouse Funding LLC | Delaware |
July 12, 2006
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Ivy Street Hopewell LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Diversified American Hotels, L.P. | Delaware | |
Potomac Hotel Limited Partnership | Delaware | |
HMC AP GP LLC | Delaware | |
HMC AP LP | Delaware | |
HMC AP Canada Company | Nova Scotia | |
HMC Toronto Airport GP LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Toronto Airport LP | Delaware | |
HMC Toronto EC GP LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Toronto EC LP | Delaware | |
HMC Charlotte GP LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Charlotte LP | Delaware | |
HMC Charlotte (Calgary) Company | Nova Scotia | |
Calgary Charlotte Holdings Company | Nova Scotia | |
HMC Grace (Calgary) Company | Nova Scotia | |
HMC Maui LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Lenox LLC | Delaware | |
Calgary Charlotte Partnership | Alberta | |
HMC Chicago Lakefront LLC | Delaware | |
HMC East Side LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Kea Lani LLC | Delaware | |
East Side Hotel Associates, L.P. | Delaware | |
HMC O’Hare Suites Ground LLC | Delaware | |
HMC Toronto Air Company | Nova Scotia | |
HMC Toronto EC Company | Nova Scotia | |
Cincinnati Plaza LLC | Delaware | |
Host Cincinnati II LLC | Delaware | |
Host Cincinnati Hotel LLC | Delaware | |
Host Financing LLC | Delaware | |
Host Fourth Avenue LLC | Delaware | |
Host Indianapolis I LLC | Delaware | |
Host Los Angeles LLC | Delaware | |
Host Mission Hills, L.L.C. | Delaware | |
Host Mission Hills II LLC | Delaware | |
Host Mission Hills Hotel LLC | Delaware | |
Host Needham LLC | Delaware | |
Host Needham II LLC | Delaware | |
Host Needham Hotel LLC | Delaware | |
Host Realty LLC | Delaware | |
Host Realty Company LLC | Delaware | |
Host Realty Hotel LLC | Delaware | |
Host Tucson LLC | Delaware | |
Host Waltham LLC | Delaware | |
Host Waltham II LLC | Delaware | |
Host Waltham Hotel LLC | Delaware |
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HST LT LLC | Delaware | |
HST I LLC | Delaware | |
Mission Hills TPP LLC | Delaware | |
Needham TPP LLC | Delaware | |
South Coast Host Hotel LLC | Delaware | |
Starlex LLC | Delaware | |
Tampa TPP LLC | Delaware | |
Tucson TPP LLC | Delaware | |
Host Realty Partnership, L.P. | Delaware | |
Host Houston Briar Oaks, LP | Delaware |