Novel sulfinyl imine ligands for asymmetric catalysis.

[structure: see text] A novel class of P,N-sulfinyl imine ligands has been prepared that incorporates chirality solely at sulfur. The Pd complex of ligand 14 catalyzes the allylic alkylation reaction with high enantioselectivity (94%), and the first crystal structure of a Pd-bound sulfinyl imine provides insight into binding mode and origins of stereoselectivity.