Reaction of the N-phosphinoyl-U-sulfonylhydroxylamine PhMeCH (Ph) P(0) NHOMs 10 with RNH, ( R = Me or Bur) results in migration of the phenyl group from phosphorus to nitrogen which leads to the rearrangement product PhMeCHP(O)(NHPh)NHR. Using samples of 10 enriched in one diastereoisomer (80: 20) or the other (3: 97). the reaction with neat RNH, proceeds with a high degree of stereospecificity, thereby ruling out the possibility of a free metaphosphonimidate intermediate. For the MeNH, reaction, the relative configurations of substrate and product, deduced from their X-ray crystal structures, show the sense of the stereospecificity to be retention of configuration at phosphorus; for the Bu'NH, reaction, indirect evidence leads to the same conclusion. Retention of configuration is thought to result from initial base-induced rearrangement to the phosphonamidic sulfonic mixed anhydride PhMeCHP(0) (NHPh)OMs, with inversion of configuration at phosphorus; this then undergoes nucleophilic substitution with RN H, to give the observed product. The nucleophilic substitution can have an associative S,2( P) mechanism (inversion of configuration at phosphorus) but also a dissociative elimination-addition mechanism. The latter is responsible for departures from complete stereospecificity; these are small with MeNH, and neat Bu'NH,, but large with Bu'NH, at high dilution.N-Phosphinoylhydroxylamines such as Ph,P(O)NHOH are the phosphorus analogues of hydroxamic acids and when suitably activated they undergo a Lossen-like rearrangement with base. Thus, for example, the 0-methylsulfonyl derivative 1 (R = Ph) reacts with MeNH, or Bu'NH, to give the phosphonic diamide 3 (R' = Me or Bur) in which a phenyl group has migrated from phosphorus to nitrogen., Alkyl groups migrate much less readily than phenyl, so the unsymmetrical substrates 1 (R = alkyl) still give only the phenyl-migration products 3. Alkyl groups will migrate if there is no competing phenyl group but they do so only with r e l ~c t a n c e . ~ Rearrangement may proceed by way of a monomeric metaphosphonimidate 2 (Scheme 1 ) 1 2 3 Scheme 1 Paper 4/04207G