Company director spared jail after glassing estate agent in the face leaving him with permanent scarring James Richardson, 31, of Battersea, south London, handed a suspended sentence for unprovoked attack Richardson shattered slim glass tumbler across victim's right eye Edward Peers, 35, needed plastic surgery to treat gaping wound to his face Vicious incident sparked after petty dispute in trendy Chelsea bar Guilty: Company director James Richardson, pictured, was handed a 20 month suspended sentence for glassing an estate agent in the face A company director was spared jail despite leaving an international estate agent with permanent scarring after glassing him in the face in a nightclub. James Richardson, 31, launched the vicious and unprovoked attack on 35-year-old Edward Peers during an after-work drink in an exclusive London bar. Mr Peers, a senior sales negotiator at Hamptons, required urgent plastic surgery and 22 stitches to the gash to his face. He was lucky to escape serious damage to his eye, the Old Bailey heard. He was celebrating a friend's birthday when he got into a petty dispute with Richardson at the bar on King's Road, Chelsea, at around 1.30am on 26 October 2012. Richardson, who runs a family firm providing building maintenance for estate agents, had been drinking for over three hours. Judge Rebecca Poulet QC handed down a 20 month prison term, suspended for two years. But she added that she would have jailed him had it not been for 'exceptional circumstances'. She said: "There appears to have been some relatively minor incident that caused antagonism between the two of you. It is difficult to precisely discern what that involved in the light of the amount of drink both of you hand. You were standing near the bar, you had just bought a drink, and had a slim glass tumbler in your hand when Edward Peers raised his arms towards you. You reacted instinctively and quite wrongly and recklessly to push his arm away and strike Edward Peers in the face. The glass shattered around his right eye. Mr Peers suffered two cuts to his eyebrow area and a deep cut down the side of his nose. He spent 24 hours in hospital and was treated by a specialist in plastic surgery. During sentencing on Friday, last week, Judge Poulet told Richardson: "You narrowly missed his right eye. Happily it did not sustain any injury. "It was a blow with a glass and it caused serious permanent scarring to Mr Peers" face." Richardson was arrested at the scene and was heard to say repeatedly: "I'm sorry." He was charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of malicious wounding in February this year. Spared jail: A judge at the Old Bailey, pictured, that he would have jailed company director James Richardson had it not been for 'exceptional circumstances' The prosecution accepted the plea earlier this month. Judge Poulet told Richardson she would have jailed him for 20 months had it not been for the "exceptional circumstances." This was an instinctive single blow. I accept that this offence was out of character. I have observed you in court, listened to your counsel and considered carefully what the writer of the pre-sentence report has said and in all the circumstances I feel that justice will be done if I suspend the sentence. I hope you understand the court has been lenient and it is to be hoped the courts will never see you again. Richardson, of Battersea, south London, was sentenced to 20 months imprisonment suspended for two years. He was ordered to pay £2,500 compensation to the victim, £400 towards prosecution costs and a £100 victim surcharge. Richardson will also have to complete a "restorative activity requirement" which could involve him meeting with the victim.