The curtilage is a legal term which delineates the land immediately surrounding a house or dwelling, including any closely associated buildings and structures, but excluding any associated 'open fields beyond'. It delineates the boundary within which a home owner can have a reasonable expectation of privacy and where 'intimate home activities' take place. It is an important legal concept in some jurisdictions for the understanding of burglary, trespass, and in relation to planning controls.
In urban properties the location of the curtilage may be evident from the position of fences, wall and similar; within larger properties it may be a matter of some legal debate as to where the private area ends and the 'open fields' start.
Read more about Curtilage: In UK Listed-building Legislation
Other articles related to "curtilage":
... are not protected by the Fourth Amendment, the curtilage, or outdoor area immediately surrounding the home, may be protected ... An area is curtilage if it "harbors the intimate activity associated with the sanctity of a man's home and the privacies of life." Courts make this ... area immediately surrounding a tent (or any structure used as a home) might be considered curtilage ...
... While open fields are not protected by the Fourth Amendment, the curtilage, or outdoor area immediately surrounding the home, is protected ... courts have held aerial surveillance of curtilage not to be included in the protections from unwarranted search so long as the airspace above the curtilage is generally accessible by the public ... An area is curtilage if it "harbors the intimate activity associated with the sanctity of a man's home and the privacies of life." Courts make this determination by examining "whether the area is included ...
... building legislation uses the concept of curtilage ... a listed building may extend to other structures or landscape within the curtilage of the primary structure, if the item(s) in the curtilage is old enough, and physically attached to ... so that later additions, while they may be within the curtilage, are not included in the listing designation ...