INTRODUCTION

In the traditional theater of litigation, the rule of engagement was simple: Plead facts, not law. A Statement of Claim or Defence was meant to be a factual narrative, leaving the legal arguments for the final address. However, the image of Order 22 you’ve provided highlights a critical procedural evolution: the formal move from Demurrer to Proceedings in Lieu of Demurrer.
For a legal practitioner, understanding this shift is the difference between a case that drags on for years and one that is efficiently resolved on a preliminary point.

1. What was "Demurrer"?
Historically, a Demurrer was a formal objection by a defendant who argued that even if all the facts alleged by the plaintiff were true, they were legally insufficient to require an answer or to support a claim. It essentially "stopped" the clock.
However, Demurrers were often used as a delay tactic. Because they were abolished (as seen in Rule 1 of your text), the law now requires these legal challenges to be integrated directly into the pleadings.

2. Pleading Law: The Exception to the Rule
While the general rule remains that pleadings should contain only material facts, Order 22, Rule 2(1) provides a specific window to raise a Point of Law.
This is not "arguing the law" in the sense of a written brief; rather, it is identifying a legal defect that is apparent on the face of the opponent's pleadings. Common examples include:
Statute of Limitation: "The action is statute-barred."
Locus Standi: "The Plaintiff lacks the standing to sue."
Jurisdiction: "This Court lacks the subject-matter jurisdiction to hear this claim."
Res Judicata: "This matter has already been decided by a competent court."

3. The Power of Rule 2(2) and 2(3)
The real "teeth" of this Order lie in the court's power to dispose of the matter early.
Substantial Disposal: If a point of law is raised and the judge finds that it "disposes of the whole action" (Rule 2(2)), the court can dismiss the suit right then and there. This saves the parties the cost and time of calling witnesses for a full trial.
Striking Out: Under Rule 2(3), if a pleading discloses no reasonable cause of action or is frivolous and vexatious, the court has the discretion to strike it out.

4. Strategic Application
How should a lawyer use this? Instead of waiting for the end of a trial to argue that a claim is legally dead, you "plead" that point of law as a Preliminary Objection within your Statement of Defence.
By doing so, you invite the Court to set a date to hear that specific legal point first. If you win, the case ends before it truly begins.

CONCLUSION
Order 22 ensures that the court is not a place for "academic exercises." If a case is legally hollow, it should be buried at the earliest possible stage.