Exhibit 5.1
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Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP 2200 Wells Fargo Center 90 South Seventh Street Minneapolis Minnesota 55402-3901 Phone +1 612 766 7000 Fax +1 612 766 1600 |
April 30, 2020
Wells Fargo & Company
420 Montgomery Street
San Francisco, California 94104
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We have acted as counsel for Wells Fargo & Company, a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), in connection with (i) the preparation of a Registration Statement onForm S-3, as amended, FileNo. 333-236148 (the “Registration Statement”) of the Company filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), relating to the proposed offer and sale from time to time of the securities referred to therein; (ii) Pricing Supplement No. 4 dated April 23, 2020 to the Prospectus Supplement dated February 26, 2020 (the “Prospectus Supplement”) and the Prospectus dated February 25, 2020 (the “Prospectus”), relating to the offer and sale by the Company under the Registration Statement of $3,000,000,000 aggregate principal amount of Medium-Term Notes, Series U, Senior RedeemableFixed-to-Floating Rate Notes due April 30, 2026; and (iii) Pricing Supplement No. 5 dated April 23, 2020 to the Prospectus Supplement and the Prospectus, relating to the offer and sale by the Company under the Registration Statement of $3,500,000,000 aggregate principal amount of Medium-Term Notes, Series U, Senior RedeemableFixed-to-Floating Rate Notes due April 30, 2041 (the Medium-Term Notes described in clauses (ii) – (iii) being herein referred to collectively as the “Notes”). The Notes are to be issued under the Indenture dated as of February 21, 2017 (the “Indenture”) entered into by the Company and Citibank, N.A., as trustee, and sold pursuant to, in each case, a Terms Agreement dated April 23, 2020 among the Company and the Agents named therein (each, a “Terms Agreement”).
We have examined such documents, records and instruments as we have deemed necessary or appropriate for the purposes of this opinion.
Based on the foregoing, we are of the opinion that the Notes have been duly authorized and, when duly executed by the Company, authenticated in accordance with the provisions of the Indenture, and delivered to and paid for by the Agents pursuant to the applicable Terms Agreement, the Notes will constitute valid and legally binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms subject to applicable bankruptcy, reorganization, insolvency, moratorium, fraudulent conveyance, receivership or other laws affecting creditors’ rights generally from time to time in effect and subject to general equity principles including, without limitation, concepts of materiality, reasonableness, good faith, fair