The copper(II) phthalate complex with nicotinamide [Cu L 2(μ- Pht)(H2O)] · 0.5H2O( I) (where L is nicotinamide and Pht 2− is an anion of phthalic acid) is synthesized and investigated using IR spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. The crystals of compound I are monoclinic, a = 13.368(2) Å, b = 7.891(3) Å, c = 20.480(2) Å, β = 108.69(2)°, Z = 4, and space group P21/ c. The structural units of crystal I are linear chains formed by bridging phthalate anions and crystallization water molecules. The copper atom is coordinated by two pyridine nitrogen atoms of two nicotinamide ligands (Cu-N, 2.001 and 2.045 Å), two oxygen atoms of different phthalate anions (Cu-O, 1.964 and 2.235 Å), and the oxygen atom of the H2 O molecule (Cu-O, 2.014 Å). The coordination polyhedron of the copper atom is completed to an elongated (4 + 1 + 1) tetragonal bipyramid by the second (chelating) oxygen atom of the carboxyl group (Cu-O, 2.587 Å), which is one of the anions of phthalic acid. The linear polymer molecules are joined into complex macromolecular dimers with the closest internal contacts of the specific type. The macromolecular dimers are the main supramolecular ensembles of the crystal structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]