Exhibit 5.1

767 Fifth Avenue

New York, NY 10153-0119

+1 212 310 8000 tel

+1 212 310 8007 fax

April 29, 2016

C. R. Bard, Inc.

730 Central Avenue

Murray Hill, New Jersey 07974

Ladies and Gentlemen:

We have acted as counsel to C. R. Bard, Inc., a New Jersey corporation (the “Company”), in connection with the preparation and filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) of the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-3 (the “Registration Statement”), under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), relating to the registration of the offer, issuance and sale from time-to-time by the Company of an indeterminate amount of debt securities (the “Debt Securities”).

In so acting, we have examined originals or copies (certified or otherwise identified to our satisfaction) of the Registration Statement, the prospectus contained within the Registration Statement (the “Prospectus”), the Indenture, dated as of December 20, 2010 (the “Indenture”), between the Company and Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as trustee, and such corporate records, agreements, documents and other instruments, and such certificates or comparable documents of public officials and of officers and representatives of the Company, and have made such inquiries of such officers and representatives, as we have deemed relevant and necessary as a basis for the opinions hereinafter set forth.

In such examination, we have assumed the genuineness of all signatures, the legal capacity of all natural persons, the authenticity of all documents submitted to us as originals, the conformity to original documents of all documents submitted to us as certified, conformed or photostatic copies and the authenticity of the originals of such latter documents. As to all questions of fact material to this opinion that have not been independently established, we have relied upon certificates or comparable documents of officers and representatives of the Company.

We have further assumed that (i) the Company validly exists and has the requisite corporate power and authority to execute, deliver and perform its obligations under the Debt Securities and any applicable supplemental indenture related to such Debt Securities; (ii) the trustee for the Debt Securities will validly exist and have the requisite corporate power to enter into and perform its obligations under the Indenture and the

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supplemental indenture relating to the Debt Securities, as applicable; (iii) the Registration Statement and any amendments thereto (including any post-effective amendments) will have become effective and comply with all applicable laws and no stop order suspending the Registration Statement’s effectiveness will have been issued and remain in effect, in each case, at the time the Debt Securities are offered or issued as contemplated by the Registration Statement; (iv) a prospectus supplement will have been prepared and filed with the Commission describing the Debt Securities offered thereby and will at all relevant times comply with all applicable laws; (v) the Company has timely filed all necessary reports pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which are incorporated into the Registration Statement by reference; (vi) all Debt Securities will be issued and sold in compliance with applicable federal and state securities laws and in the manner stated in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the applicable prospectus supplement; (vii) a definitive purchase, underwriting or similar agreement and any other necessary agreement with respect to any Debt Securities will have been duly authorized and validly executed and delivered by the Company and the other party or parties thereto; (viii) any legally required consents, approvals, authorizations or orders of the Commission and any other regulatory authority will have been issued; (ix) any Debt Securities and applicable supplemental indenture related to such Debt Securities will be governed by New York law; and (x) the terms of any Debt Securities and their issuance and sale will have been duly established in conformity with the Indenture and the applicable supplemental indenture so as not to violate any applicable law, affect the enforceability of such Debt Securities or result in a default under or breach of any agreement or instrument binding on the Company, and so as to comply with any requirements or restrictions imposed by any court or governmental body having jurisdiction over the Company.

Based on the foregoing, and subject to the qualifications stated herein, we advise you that in our opinion, when (i) the terms of the Debt Securities to be issued under the Indenture and any applicable supplemental indenture and their issuance and sale have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate action on the part of the Company; (ii) such supplemental indenture has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by all parties thereto; and (iii) the Debt Securities have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate action by the Company and validly executed and delivered and authenticated in accordance with the Indenture and any applicable supplemental indenture and issued, sold and paid for as contemplated in the Registration Statement, Prospectus and any prospectus supplement relating thereto and in accordance with any applicable definitive purchase, underwriting or similar agreement, then such Debt Securities will constitute valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms.

The opinion expressed above with respect to enforceability is subject to the effect of any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent conveyance, reorganization, moratorium and similar laws affecting creditors’ rights and remedies generally and to general principles of equity, including principles of commercial reasonableness, good faith and fair dealing (regardless of whether enforcement is sought in a proceeding at law or in equity) and except that rights to indemnification and contribution thereunder may be limited by federal or state securities laws or public policy relating thereto.

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The opinions expressed herein are limited to the laws of the State of New York, and we express no opinion as to the effect on the matters covered by this letter of the laws of any other jurisdiction.

We hereby consent to the filing of this letter as an exhibit to the Registration Statement and to the reference to our firm under the caption “Validity of the Securities” in the Prospectus which is a part of the Registration Statement. In giving such consent, we do not hereby admit that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act or the rules and regulations of the Commission.

Very truly yours,

/s/ Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP