The validity of the Obligations offered hereby has been passed upon by Thompson Hine LLP. A copy of this opinion is attached as Exhibit 5.1 to
this Registration Statement.
Item 6. Indemnification of Directors and Officers
Section 1701.13(E) of the Ohio Revised Code provides that a corporation may indemnify or agree to indemnify any person who was or is a party,
or is threatened to be made a party, to any threatened, pending, or completed action, suit, or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative, or investigative, other than an action by or in the right of the corporation, by reason of the fact
that he is or was a director, officer, employee, or agent of the corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, trustee, officer, employee, member, manager, or agent of another corporation, domestic or foreign,
nonprofit or for profit, a limited liability company, or a partnership, joint venture, trust, or other enterprise, against expenses, including attorneys fees, judgments, fines, and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by
him in connection with such action, suit, or proceeding, if he acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, if he
had no reasonable cause to believe his conduct was unlawful. The termination of any action, suit, or proceeding by judgment, order, settlement, or conviction, or upon a plea of nolo contendere or its equivalent, shall not, of itself, create a
presumption that the person did not act in good faith and in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, that he had reasonable cause to
believe that his conduct was unlawful.
Section 1701.13(E)(2) further specifies that a corporation may indemnify or agree to indemnify any
person who was or is a party, or is threatened to be made a party, to any threatened, pending, or completed action or suit by or in the right of the corporation to procure a judgment in its favor, by reason of the fact that he is or was a director,
officer, employee, or agent of the corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, trustee, officer, employee, member, manager, or agent of another corporation, domestic or foreign, nonprofit or for profit, a
limited liability company, or a partnership, joint venture, trust, or other enterprise, against expenses, including attorneys fees, actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit, if
he acted in good faith and in a manner
he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, except that no indemnification shall be made in respect of any of the following (a) any claim, issue, or
matter as to which such person is adjudged to be liable for negligence or misconduct in the performance of his duty to the corporation unless, and only to the extent, that the court of common pleas or the court in which such action or suit was
brought determines, upon application, that, despite the adjudication of liability, but in view of all the circumstances of the case, such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnity for such expenses as the court of common pleas or such
other court shall deem proper; and (b) any action or suit in which the only liability asserted against a director is pursuant to Section 1701.95 of the Ohio Revised Code concerning unlawful loans, dividends and distribution of assets.
In addition, Section 1701.13(E)(5)(a) requires a corporation to pay any expenses, including attorneys fees, of a director in defending
an action, suit, or proceeding referred to above as they are incurred, in advance of the final disposition of the action, suit, or proceeding, upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of the director in which he agrees to both (i) repay such
amount if it is proved by clear and convincing evidence in a court of competent jurisdiction that his action or failure to act involved an act or omission undertaken with deliberate intent to cause injury to the corporation or undertaken with
reckless disregard for the best interests of the corporation and (ii) reasonably cooperate with the corporation concerning the action, suit, or proceeding. The indemnification provided by Section 1701.13(E) shall not be deemed exclusive of any other
rights to which those seeking indemnification may be entitled under the articles of incorporation or code of regulations of Fifth Third.
The code of regulations of Fifth Third provides that Fifth Third shall indemnify each director and each officer of Fifth Third, and each
person employed by Fifth Third who serves at the written request of the President of Fifth Third as a director, trustee, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, domestic or foreign, nonprofit or for profit, partnership, joint venture,
trust or other enterprise, to the full extent permitted by Ohio law, subject to the limits of applicable federal law and regulation. Fifth Third may indemnify assistant officers, employees and others by action of the Board of Directors to the extent
permitted by Ohio law, subject to the limits of applicable federal law and regulation.
Fifth Third carries directors and
officers liability insurance coverage which insures its directors and officers and the directors and officers of its subsidiaries in certain circumstances.
Item 9. Undertakings
(a) The
undersigned registrant hereby undertakes:
(1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective
amendment to this Registration Statement:
(i) To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act;
(ii) To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the Registration Statement (or the most recent
post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the Registration Statement; and
(iii) To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the Registration Statement or
any material change to such information in the Registration Statement;
provided
,
however
, that paragraphs (1)(i) and (1)(ii)
above do not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in periodic reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of
the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in this Registration Statement.
(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such
post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.
(3) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the
termination of the offering.
(b) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities
Act, each filing of the registrants annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that is incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the
securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.
(c) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the
registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable.
In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action,
suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent,
submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.