Like many executives, Barack Obama is an admitted BlackBerry addict. But advisers insist that on Inauguration Day he should give up the device, which, in the words of one senior aide, “never stopped crackling with e-mails” during the campaign. As president, Obama will be subject to a strict records-retention law called the Presidential Records Act, and wireless devices also pose security risks deemed too high for the commander in chief.

The question for in-house counsel: If a BlackBerry poses dangers for the nation’s chief executive, should your chief executive officer be using one?