The primary scientific objectives of this project are twofold, 1) to develop a methodology to access novel enantiomerically pure chiral C3 symmetric tricyclic monophosphines and, 2) to verify their utility as chiral ligands in transition metal catalysed asymmetric reactions. This project will involve both organic and organometallic chemistry. Organic chemistry will be used for the preparation of these novel C3 symmetric tricyclic monophosphines using known methodologies such as the ring-closing-metathesis reaction, 1,4 addition reactions and the Heck reaction. Organometallic chemistry will be used for the synthesis, isolation, purification and characterisation of novel chiral transition metal catalysts based on these phosphines. The chemical and physico-chemical characteristics of these catalysts will be studied and these catalysts will be tested in asymmetric transformations. In particular, attention will be turned toward palladium-catalysed asymmetric allylic alkylation reactions, palladium-catalysed asymmetric hydrosilylation of alkenes with trichlorosilane and ruthenium-catalysed asymmetric ring-closing-metathesis reactions.