The Supreme Court of Canada has overturned the indecency conviction of a man from B.C. seen masturbating near a window in his own home.

The court acquitted Daryl Clark of Nanaimo on Thursday, ruling that his living room could not be considered a public place under the Criminal Code even though he could be partially viewed from outside.

The decision is sure to be celebrated by civil rights groups, which argued the conviction eroded privacy rights.

More than four years ago, neighbours in an apartment about 30 metres from Clark's home looked through his window and saw him touching himself. They called the police.

When officers arrived, they shone a flashlight at the house and Clark jumped back from the window, turning off the lights.

In the court's judgment, it said the police officers could see Clark "from about maybe the neck or the shoulders up" when they were on the street.

A provincial court convicted him of wilfully committing an indecent act in a public place and sentenced him to four months in jail.

The province's Court of Appeal and Supreme Court upheld the conviction.

Clark's lawyer had asked the Supreme Court of Canada to reject the conviction and appeals, arguing that Clark never meant to be observed and that a living room can't be considered a public place.