Step 1 A mixture of methyl-2-amino-4-bromobenzoate (3.06 g, 13.3 mmol), 2-fluorophenylboronic acid (2.23 g, 16.0 mmol), tetrakis(triphenylphosphine)palladium (1.54 g, 1.33 mmol) and 1 M aqueous sodium carbonate (16.6 mL, 16.6 mmol) in 1,2-dimethoxyethane (66.5 mL) was stirred at 90° C. overnight. The mixture was cooled to rt, filtered through a pad of Celite and the solids were rinsed with EtOAc. The filtrate was washed with water and brine, dried and concentrated. The residue was purified by column chromatography (eluting with a gradient from hexane to 90:10 hexane-EtOAc) to provide methyl-3-amino-2′-fluorobiphenyl-4-carboxylate (2.63 g, 81%) as a white solid. 1H NMR (400 MHz, chloroform-d) δ 7.90 (d, J=8.25 Hz, 1H), 7.38-7.46 (m, 1H), 7.27-7.35 (m, 1H), 7.08-7.22 (m, 2H), 6.85 (s, 1H), 6.82 (d, J=8.25 Hz, 1H), 5.83 (br s, 1H), 3.88 (s, 3H). Mass spectrum m/z 246.1 (M+H)+.
