General, Robust, and Stereocomplementary Preparation of α,β-Disubstituted α,β-Unsaturated Esters

An (E)- and (Z)-stereocomplementary preparative method for α,β-disubstituted α,β-unsaturated esters is performed via three general and robust reaction sequences: (i) Ti−Claisen condensation (formylation) of esters to give α-formyl esters (12 examples, 60−99%), (ii) (E)- and (Z)-stereocomplementary enol p-toluenesulfonylation (tosylation) using TsCl−N-methylimidazole (NMI)−Et3N and LiOH (24 examples, 82−99%), and (iii) stereoretentive Suzuki−Miyaura cross-coupling (18 examples, 64−96%).