summary power to punish contempt

The pith of this rather extraordinary power to punish without the formalities required by the Bill of Rights for the prosecution of federal crimes generally, is that the necessities of the administration of justice require such summary dealing with obstructions to it. It is a mode of vindicating the majesty of law, in its active manifestation, against obstruction and outrage.

Defined by the Supreme Court in - Offutt v. United States, 348 U.S. 11 (1954).