My parents put their house in a family trust, what happens to it?

If the house was legally transferred to the trust and the trust owns it, the property is generally not part of your parents' personal estate, and it does not pass under their wills. Instead, the trustees hold and deal with the trust property according to the trust deed, which sets out who the beneficiaries are and how and when distributions are made, subject to the trustees' discretion in a typical discretionary trust, and the Trusts Act 2019 governs trustees' duties. Ask the trustees for a copy of the trust deed and information about the trust's assets, since beneficiaries generally have a right to basic trust information under the Act. If you believe the trust was not properly administered, or that assets were wrongly excluded from the estate to defeat a claim, seek legal advice, since there can be remedies in some situations.