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EXHIBIT 5.2
[LETTERHEAD OF RICHARDS, LAYTON & FINGER]
November 26, 1997
Capitol Trust I
c/o Capitol Bancorp Ltd.
200 Washington Square North, Fourth Floor
Lansing, MI 48933
Re: Capitol Trust I
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We have acted as special Delaware counsel for Capitol Trust I, a Delaware
business trust (the "Trust"), in connection with the matters set forth herein.
At your request, this opinion is being furnished to you.
For purposes of giving the opinions hereinafter set forth, our examination
of documents has been limited to the examination of originals or copies of the
following:
(a) The Certificate of Trust of the Trust (the "Certificate"), as filed in
the office of the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware (the "Secretary
of State") on November 25, 1997;
(b) The Trust Agreement of the Trust, dated as of November 25, 1997, among
Capitol Bancorp Ltd., a Michigan corporation, (the "Company"), and the trustees
of the Trust named therein;
(c) The Registration Statement (the "Registration Statement") on Form S-3,
including a prospectus (the "Prospectus") relating to the ____% Cumulative
Trust Preferred Securities of the Trust representing preferred undivided
beneficial interests in the Trust (each, a "Preferred Security" and
collectively, the "Preferred Securities"), as filed by the Company and the
Trust as set forth therein with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
November , 1997;
(d) A form of Amended and Restated Trust Agreement of the Trust, to be
entered into among the Company, the trustees of the Trust named therein, and
the holders, from time to time, of undivided beneficial interests in the Trust
(the "Trust Agreement"), attached as an exhibit to the Registration Statement;
and
(e) A Certificate of Good Standing for the Trust, dated November 25, 1997,
obtained from the Secretary of State.
Initially capitalized terms used herein and not otherwise defined are used
as defined in the Trust Agreement.
For purposes of this opinion, we have not reviewed any documents other
than the documents listed above, and we have assumed that there
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Capitol Bancorp Trust I
November 25, 1997
Page 2
exists no provision in any document that we have not reviewed that bears upon
or is inconsistent with the opinions stated herein. We have conducted no
independent factual investigation of our own but rather have relied solely upon
the foregoing documents, the statements and information set forth therein and
the additional matters recited or assumed herein, all of which we have assumed
to be true, complete and accurate in all material respects.
With respect to all documents examined by us, we have assumed (i) the
authenticity of all documents submitted to us as authentic originals, (ii) the
conformity with the originals of all documents submitted to us as copies or
forms, and (iii) the genuineness of all signatures.
For purposes of this opinion, we have assumed (i) that the Trust Agreement
constitutes the entire agreement among the parties thereto with respect to the
subject matter thereof, including with respect to the creation, operation and
termination of the Trust, and that the Trust Agreement and the Certificate are
in full force and effect and have not been amended, (ii) except to the extent
provided in paragraph 1 below, the due creation or due organization or due
formation, as the case may be, and valid existence in good standing of each
party to the documents examined by us under the laws of the jurisdiction
governing its creation, organization or formation, (iii) the legal capacity of
natural persons who are parties to the documents examined by us, (iv) that each
of the parties to the documents examined by us has the power and authority to
execute and deliver, and to perform its obligations under, such documents, (v)
the due authorization, execution and delivery by all parties thereto of all
documents examined by us, (vi) the receipt by each Person to whom a Preferred
Security is to be issued by the Trust (collectively, the "Preferred Security
Holders") of a Preferred Security Certificate for such Preferred Security and
the payment for the Preferred Security acquired by it, in accordance with the
Trust Agreement and the Prospectus, and (vii) that the Preferred Securities are
issued and sold to the Preferred Security Holders in accordance with the Trust
Agreement and the Prospectus. We have not participated in the preparation of
the Registration Statement and assume no responsibility for its contents.
This opinion is limited to the laws of the State of Delaware (excluding
the securities laws of the State of Delaware), and we have not considered and
express no opinion on the laws of any other jurisdiction, including federal
laws and rules and regulations relating thereto. Our opinions are rendered only
with respect to Delaware laws and rules, regulations and orders thereunder
which are currently in effect.
Based upon the foregoing, and upon our examination of such questions of
law and statutes of the State of Delaware as we have considered necessary or
appropriate, and subject to the assumptions, qualifications, limitations and
exceptions set forth herein, we are of the opinion that:
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Capitol Bancorp Trust I
November 25, 1997
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1. The Trust has been duly created and is validly existing in good
standing as a business trust under the Delaware Business Trust Act, 12 Del. C.
Sec. 3801, et seq.
2. The Preferred Securities will represent valid and, subject to the
qualifications set forth in paragraph 3 below, fully paid and nonassessable
undivided beneficial interests in the assets of the Trust.
3. The Preferred Security Holders, as beneficial owners of the Trust,
will be entitled to the same limitation of personal liability extended to
stockholders of private corporations for profit organized under the General
Corporation Law of the State of Delaware. We note that the Preferred Security
Holders may be obligated to make payments as set forth in the Trust Agreement.
We consent to the filing of this opinion with the Securities and Exchange
Commission as an exhibit to the Registration Statement. In addition, we hereby
consent to the use of our name under the heading "Validity of Securities" in
the Prospectus. In giving the foregoing consents, we do not thereby 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. Except as stated above,
without our prior written consent, this opinion may not be furnished or quoted
to, or relied upon by, any other Person for any purpose.
Very truly yours,
/s/ Richards, Layton & Finger
GCK/ks