This report describes an improved synthesis of enantiomerically pure (S)-2-[4-(Dimethylamino)phenyl]-2,3-dihydro-N- [2-hydroxy-3-[4-[2-(1-methylethoxy)-phenyl]-1-piperazinyl]propyl]-1,3-dioxo-1H-isoindole-5-carboxamide (RWJ 69442), a potent and selective α 1a -adrenergic receptor antagonist for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia. The synthesis highlights less hazardous reagents, easier purification and higher enantiomeric purity. The N-benzyl-N-t-butoxycarbonyl amine 6 could serve as an enantiomerically pure chiral building block for asymmetric synthesis. In a program to develop a potent and selective α 1a -adrenergic receptor antagonist for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH),was identified as a development candidate [1]. A sample of 25 g of RWJ 69442 was prepared based upon the approach shown in Scheme I [1]. However, there were some drawbacks associated with this approach that were not ideal for larger scale synthesis. First, the preparation of azido-diol 1 [2] involved the use of the highly toxic and potentially explosive sodium azide reagent. Second, the chromatographic purification of azido-tosylate 2 [2] was not trivial even on multi-gram scale. Third, in order to obtain greater than 99% ee of RWJ 69442, column chromatography followed by repeated recrystallizations of the intermediates were required.In our efforts to improve the synthesis without involving azide functionality, we examined a variety of amine equivalents including methoxyamine, phthalimide, aminodiphenylmethane, benzylamine, tritylamine, benzophenone imine, di-t-butyl iminodicarboxylate and ammonia. We found that the use of benzylamine followed by t-butyloxycarbonyl (Boc) protection best fulfilled our overall requirements (Scheme II).