This article describes the synthesis and characterization of N-(3-methoxyphenyl) itaconimide (MAI) and N-(4-methoxyphenyl) itaconimide (PAI) obtained by the reaction of itaconic anhydride with m-anisidine and p-anisidine, respectively. Structural and thermal characterization of MAI and PAI monomers was performed with Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), H-1-NMR, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and thermogravimetric analysis. Copolymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) with various amounts of MAI or PAI ranging from 0.1 to 0.5 was performed in solution with azobisisobutyronitrile as an initiator. Structural and molecular characterization of copolymers was performed with FTIR, H-1-NMR, elemental analysis, and gel permeation chromatography. The nitrogen percentage was used to calculate the copolymer composition. The monomer reactivity ratios for MMA-MAI copolymers were found to be 1.00 +/- 0.01 for MMA and 0.99 +/- 0.07 for MAI; those for MMA-PAI copolymers were 0.93 +/- 0.02 for MMA and 1.11 +/- 0.10 for PAI. The molecular weights of the copolymers were in the range of 0.94-9.7 x 10(3) (number-average molecular weight) and 3.3-101.8 x 10(3) (weight-average molecular weight), with polydispersity indices in the range of 1.5-4.1. The molecular weight decreased with the increasing molar fraction of imide in the polymer backbone. The glass-transition temperature, as determined from DSC scans, increased with increasing amounts of itaconimides in the copolymers. A significant improvement in the char yield, as determined by thermogravimetry, was observed upon copolymerization. (C) 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.