Ethyl 6-chloropyridine-3-carboxylate (Ethyl-6-chloronicotinate, E-6-ClN) undergoes direct amidation on reacting with benzylamine in the presence lanthanum trifluoromethanesulfonate La(OTf)3. The structural and physicochemical properties of E-6-ClN have been investigated based on its spectroscopic data, time-dependent density functional theory and density of state diagrams.