She initially appears in a flashback episode as the girlfriend of protagonist Phoenix Wright, who is on trial for murder and defended by rookie defense attorney Mia Fey.

Daughter to Morgan Fey and twin sister to Iris, she initially engaged in a plot to steal from her father and ultimately murdered her stepsister, escaping justice in the end.

This plan ultimately fails due to the intervention of multiple people, including Godot, Mia, Phoenix, and Maya, the latter channeling her spirit so that she couldn't be killed by her.

[5] Dahlia Hawthorne is voiced in English by Dani Chambers, who expressed excitement to play the role due to her love of the Ace Attorney series.

Nintendo Life writer Kate Gray praised Dahlia as a "compelling" villain who was enjoyable to face in court; she compared her to Professor Moriarty, the rival of Sherlock Holmes, someone who is a "real foil that's almost as good at hiding her tracks as [Phoenix] is at revealing them."

She also discussed how Dahlia is a motivating factor for the actions of several Trials and Tribulations characters and revealed the flaws of them as well, including Phoenix's "unwavering trust," Godot's "dogged pursuit of revenge," and Maya's "willingness to help despite the cost to herself."

She found her a highlight of the series, arguing that even once she is defeated, it doesn't change the trauma suffered by characters like Iris, Godot, Phoenix, and the Fey family, as well as the deaths of Terry and Valerie.

[8] Hardcore Gamine 101 staff argued that Trials and Tribulations was often considered the best title in the Phoenix Wright series, attributing this in part to Dahlia being "one of the most devious villains" in Ace Attorney and her "shocking mean streak" being significant through the game.

[4] VGMOnline writer Oliver Jia discussed her theme, stating that it is inspired by traditional Japanese music and that it had an "ambient arrangement of notes that represent the seemingly innocent nature of the character."