Exhibit 5







                               February 11, 1998


First International Bancorp, Inc.
One Commercial Plaza
Hartford, CT 06103

      Re:  Registration Statement on Form S-8
           Under the Securities Act of 1933, as Amended

Ladies and Gentlemen:

     We have acted as counsel for First International Bancorp, Inc., a Delaware
corporation (the "Company"), in connection with the Company's Registration
Statement on Form S-8 proposed to be filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission on or about February 12, 1998 (the "Registration Statement").

     The Registration Statement covers the registration of 40,000 shares of
common stock, $.01 par value per share, of the Company (the "Shares"), which
may be issued by the Company upon exercise of stock options, granted pursuant
to certain stock option agreements by and between the Company and directors of
the Company (together, the "Option Agreements").

     We have reviewed the corporate proceedings taken by the Company with
respect to the authorization of the Option Agreements and the issuance of the
Shares thereunder. We have also examined and relied upon originals or copies of
such agreements, instruments, corporate records, certificates, and other
documents as we have deemed necessary or appropriate to enable us to express
the opinions rendered hereby. In our examination, we have assumed the
genuineness of all signatures, the conformity to the originals of all documents
reviewed by us as copies, the authenticity and completeness of all original
documents reviewed by us in original or copy form, and the legal competence of
each individual executing any document.

     We further assume that all Shares issued upon exercise of options granted
pursuant to the Option Agreements, will be issued in accordance with the terms
of the Option Agreements.

     Subject to the limitations set forth below, we have made such examination
of law as we have deemed necessary for the purposes of this opinion. This
opinion is limited solely to the Delaware General Corporation Law as applied by



courts located in Delaware, to the extent that it may apply to or govern the
transactions that are the subject of this opinion.

     Based upon and subject to the foregoing, we are of the opinion that the
Shares, when issued and delivered upon the exercise of stock options, duly
granted pursuant to the Option Agreements and paid for in accordance with the
provisions of the Option Agreements and the grant, will be validly issued,
fully paid, and non-assessable.

     We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion with the Securities and
Exchange Commission as an exhibit to the Registration Statement.

                                    Very truly yours,


                                    /s/ Bingham Dana LLP


                                    BINGHAM DANA LLP