The trimethylaluminum-mediated Michael addition of ethyl phenyl-H-phosphinate to 1,2-dihydrophosphinine oxides (1A) yielded 3-(EtOPhP(O))-1,2,3,6-tetrahydrophosphinine oxides (4) in a selective manner, as a mixture of only two diastereomers. In the above type of reactions (e.g., in that of 1Aa and Ph 2 P(O)H), Me 3 Al could not be substituted by microwave irradiation due to low efficiency. Catalytic hydrogenation of the Michael adducts (4) led to 3-(EtOPhP(O)-1,2,3,4,5,6-hexahydrophosphinine oxides 5, in the case of P-phenyl substituent (5a), as a mixture of only two diastereomers, while in the instance of the P-ethoxy derivative (5b), as a mixture of four isomers. Stereostructure of the products (5) was substantiated on the basis of analogies and stereospecific NMR couplings. The predominant conformations of compounds 4a, 4b, 5a, and 5b-1 were determined by HF/6-31G * calculations. Reduction of P(1)-Ph heterocycles 4a and 5a by phenylsilane resulted in monodeoxygenation to afford P-ligands 6 and 8, respectively, that were protected as the corresponding phosphine boranes (7 and 9, respectively). C 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 18:747-753, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com).