Palladium(II)-phosphine complexes, especially PdCl2(dppf) where dppf stands for 1,1'-bis(diphenylphosphino)ferrocene, are effective catalysts for the cross-coupling of Grignard reagents with dichlorobenzenes to produce selectively mono-alkylated and arylated benzenes. The addition of ligands is also effective for the cross-coupling of Grignard reagents containing a beta-hydrogen(s).