Reaction of methyl benzoylphenylphosphinate 1 with hydroxylamine gave methyl alpha-hydroxyiminobenzylphenylphosphinate 2 as a mixture of E and Z isomers with the E isomer predominating. Pure (E)-2 when heated gave methyl N-benzoylphenylphosphonamidate 3 as the sole product. In contrast, (Z)-2 when heated gave, as a result of fragmentation, mainly methyl hydrogen phenylphosphonate 4 and benzonitrile, together with methyl N-phenylcarbamoylphenylphosphinate 5 as the minor product; the latter results from Beckmann rearrangement of (Z)-2. Analogous behaviour is exhibited by the two geometrical isomers of dimethyl alpha-hydroxyiminobenzylphosphonate 8. The crystal structures of methyl (E)-alpha-hydroxyiminobenzylphenylphosphinate (E)-2 and methyl benzoylphenylphosphonamidate 3 are reported.