EXHIBIT 5.1

                      [McDermott, Will & Emery Letterhead]


                                  May 20, 1998

United Road Services, Inc.
8 Automation Lane
Albany, NY 12205

                  Re:      Registration Statement on Form S-3
                           ----------------------------------

Ladies and Gentlemen:

         You have requested our opinion in connection with the above-referenced
registration statement (the "Registration Statement"), under which certain
stockholders of United Road Services, Inc. (the "Company") may to sell up to
776,963 shares of Common Stock, par value $.001 per share, of the Company (the
"Shares").

         In arriving at the opinion expressed below, we have examined (i) the
Registration Statement, (ii) the Amended and Restated Certificate of
Incorporation of the Company, (iii) the Amended and Restated Bylaws of the
Company and (iv) such other documents as we have deemed necessary to enable us
to express the opinion hereinafter set forth. In addition, we have examined and
relied, to the extent we deemed proper, on certificates of officers of the
Company as to factual matters, and on the originals or copies certified or
otherwise identified to our satisfaction, of all such corporate records of the
Company and such other instruments and certificates of public officials and
other persons as we have deemed appropriate. In our examination, we have assumed
the authenticity of all documents submitted to us as originals, the conformity
to the original documents of all documents submitted to us as copies, the
genuineness of all signatures on documents reviewed by us and the legal capacity
of natural persons.

         Based upon and subject to the foregoing, we are of the opinion that the
Shares which are issued and outstanding on the date of this opinion have been
duly authorized and validly issued and are fully paid and non-assessable.

         We hereby consent to the use of this opinion as an exhibit to the
Registration Statement. In giving this consent, we do not hereby admit that we
come within the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of
the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the rules and regulations of the
Securities and Exchange Commission thereunder.

                                             Very truly yours,



                                             /s/ McDermott, Will & Emery